Life Inside (or is it outside) The Fishbowl

New Year, New Projects

2012-01-28T19:32:00.000-06:00

I can't believe January is almost history. Life is busy as always, full of adventure and laughs. Our church is celebrating it's 100th anniversary this year. As a result, my women's group is sponsoring a 100th anniversary cookbook. we haven't had a cookbook since 2000. Things started out pretty slowly, but the ladies got busy and we gathered 418 recipes! I was hoping for 200. We met this morning and proofread all 418 recipes, making changes as we went. It took 9 ladies and 4 hours, but we got 'er done. We start pre-sales tomorrow and hope to have our order place before the 6th. I am full of anticipation to see the finished product.

Next up is the pictorial directory. Meeting with that guy in a week. This anniversary stuff is hard work!

School is going pretty good. I've kept on schedule in all the subjects - which is nothing short of a miracle!

Our family is doing great. Sarah's pregnancy is progressing nicely. She feels good and they now know she's having a girl! We can hardly wait :) Jacob will graduate in May. He is still pondering his next move. Grad school, job, military...time will tell--I know God will show him the way. Allan and I continue to try to catch a movie each Friday. We saw 31 movies in 2011. We've got to beat that in 2012! Movies don't cost much in our little town, and it's fun to have something local to do together. We began the new school year having breakfast together, the three of us. Allan cooks while I get ready for work, and we get Jacob up when it's ready to eat. We've really enjoyed this regular family time together. We do our devotions now in the morning when we're always all together.

Life is good...happy, healthy, loved. I am truly blesses!

Thunder!

2011-09-17T17:24:00.000-05:00

I didn't sit down to write about rain, but just as I started -- THUNDER!! And rain!! Every little bit will help our poor dry land. I've been watering the grass all day (I have about 4 hours to go to finish it all.) They said on the news last week that we are about 25" short of rain from this time last year. We'll blow away before long. I was walking in the back of the playground last week and was shocked! The ground is deeply cracked, and the concrete that holds up the fence posts are almost completely uncovered where the soil has blown away. You can see almost a foot of the re-bar that holds the landscape timbers surrounding the playground. Huge amounds of soil has blown away. Yikes.

We've had quite a bit of exciting news since school has resumed. Sarah is expecting our third grandchild in May! We are so thrilled to have a new grand-baby! God is so good.

Jacob ordered his class ring last week - TAMUK class of 2012! He's worked so hard and we're really proud that he's able to graduate in 3 years. He also has a lead on a job as Assistant Farm Manager after graduation. It's too early to know yet, but I'm really excited that he has a lead this early in the process. He's busy thinking about 21st birthday activities. Time goes by so fast.

As for me, as hard as I've been trying to be fit and healthy, I took my first dose of Lipitor today :( But Allan says it's the best thing. I hate having to take medicine though.

School is going pretty good. I've been able to maintain my staying aheadness. lol. I am almost finished with all my lesson plans for the second grading period, and I'm keeping up with my copying for the week ahead. So far so good. Not behind in grading. This MUST be a record.

Allan and I continue to do fun things together. We have started going to the TAMUK volleyball games. We don't really know much about volleyball, but are having a blast learning. It's really fast paced and fun to watch. We went to see "The Help" last night, and it was a GREAT movie...friends we went with have read the book and said it wasn't like the book, but either way, it was good!

WOW - What a Summer!

2011-08-22T12:47:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that summer is over. It was the best summer. My wonderful husband worked so hard to make it a nice summer, and he succeeded many times over. We had so much fun. Oh the things we did...we consumed countless calories of wonderful, delicious food at all of our favorite places. We shopped til we dropped (literally - I almost fell over on our last shopping trip - lol). We went to the beach. We went to Mexico. We went swimming several times a week. Much time was spent sharing meals with friends and family. Both of our grandchildren celebrated birthdays (4 and 2!!). What fun we had sharing those special moments. Time goes by so fast. I was able to spend almost a week with my mom and spend a short time with my in-laws while I was in town. And the movies...lots and lots of movies...20 of them in all. What fun it was going to different theaters and seeing all those movies. From "Fast Five" to "Spy Kids," we saw almost all of them. Some were terrific (Super 8, Harry Potter, Midnight in Paris,) some were fun tween movies (Judy Moody, Spy Kids, Monte Carlo) - In Monte Carlo we were by far the oldest in the theater and I believe Allan was the only dude - lol. Some were terrible (Conan!). Since Sarah and her family are living closer, I've been able to babysit a few times - loving it! Boy O Boy was it hard seeing this special time come to an end. I truly have the most awesome husband in the world - so blessed by God - I cannot thank him enough for this summer!

But today, school started. I'm thankful for a short break, and the morning has gone wonderfully. I seem to have a classroom full of eager minds. They are learning their procedures, behavior is pretty good considering how excited they all are, and everyone seems to like each other. All good.

But I still miss my hubby...

Passing Thoughts

2011-06-05T17:13:00.000-05:00

I heard an outstanding sermon today on 1 Peter 5:6-11. There was discussion on worry, and the anxiousness it causes in our hearts. Several things jumped out at me because I had been thinking about things along these lines in the last few days. "And after you have suffered a little while,..." Those words - a little while - don't always seem like a little while. As friends are fighting deadly diseases, it seems their pain goes on a long while. But when compared to eternity, our lives - good and bad times - are indeed a little while. I was thinking earlier in the week how our lives can change in an instant. One day all is peachy--then a terrible diagnosis, a super scary car wreck (for us), a loss of a job...the list is endless. But sometimes the reverse is true as well...if I close my eyes, I can imagine walking down the hall and finding toddlers in the living room watching cartoons. But in fact, my children are adults now. The time went by like the blink of an eye.

My husband discussed worry, how it turns around and around in you head going nowhere and accomplishing nothing. He pointed out how this make us feel anxious, and how we become subject to the temptations of the devil when we're full of anxiety. Now I'm not a big worrier, and I don't often feel anxious...just not in my personality I guess. But when I do worry and feel anxious - WOW - not a good feeling. It feels like my head is spinning out of control and my heart pounds and frankly I don't like that feeling. What I learned today is that feeling comes because I'm trying too hard to handle thinks myself, rather than leaving them on Christ's shoulders. No wonder I'm anxious - trying to do God's job - when I'm definitely NOT God! Who could succeed at that? No one but God. So I think I'll work hard at letting God be God, and trying to listen and follow his lead.

Monday

2011-04-18T21:32:00.000-05:00

What a day! Could I have used a Monday off from work?? YES! I awoke with a start with the alarm at 5:30 remembering that it was my turn to read a devotion at our staff meeting. BLAST! So...blind without my glasses I stumbled to the computer and searched for a Holy Week devotion. Found one after a bit that I thought was pretty good - a tad long but not too much so. Then realized while driving to work that it was the first day of the next grading period - I of course had not prepared new folders - not even printing out the pages that go in the folder - 0 - ZERO prep. I had not typed up the students "My family is special because..." paragraphs for the newsletter. I hadn't completed my lesson plans. No parent letter. Zero, zip, nada. Totally unprepared. But somehow I fit it all in and ended the day with everything pretty much how it should be.

So happy to arrive home, I threw together some cheese enchiladas and Mexican rice for dinner. On a whim, we went to the movies! All three of us. Went to see Arthur. Jacob and I really liked it, Allan declared it "Fair." Yes, I know I have report cards to send home Wednesday. Yes, the grades are not even averaged yet. But there is always tomorrow. The sun will come out tomorrow - at least that's what I'm told.

Spring Fever

2011-04-03T21:18:00.001-05:00

Ahh Spring...time for sneezing, coughing, hacking and yes fever. What a week the past week was! But thanks to an extremely understanding husband, a Z-Pack from Mexico, and many cough and allergy pills, I'm feeling human again. Actually slept fairly well last night.

We had a great Sunday. Church was awesome - two wonderful brothers baptized, Holy Communion, an interesting Bible Class -- all good and enriching.

Tacos for lunch followed by our regular afternoon of Office viewing - lots of laughs. For dinner I attempted the Pork chop and Wild Rice casserole that was a disaster when I fixed it in January. I've been afraid to try again, but alas, it was back to its original goodness. Still think it was the Great Value cream of Celery soup that wrecked it before. Animation Domination followed dinner and then a trip to Wally World to finish out our evening.

This is a big week at school. CAT test time! Always makes me a nervous wreck. I pray the kids will work up to their abilities. Not putting their full effort into the tests is a problem for some. They are all such bright kids - I'd like their test results to reflect that. I've got three grades to test this year so that means our testing day will be longer than in years past. Stressful for all involved. Keep Praying!

Spring Break!

2011-03-13T21:12:00.000-06:00

Wow, it's been a month since my last post...I was doing so good there for a while. lol. The weeks have flown by. So, so busy. Work wise, I've been in the middle of a crazy AR reading contest which is thankfully over! BTW, our school came out in FIRST place in the nation. Then last week was Lutheran School Week which means a busy week of activities - fun but exhausting. Now for a break.

There are a few things I want to do this week:
1. Wash all the curtains in the house.
2. Trap all animals to give them spring flea treatments.
3. Scrapbook the photos taken thus far in 2011 (although I'm not feeling in the scrapbook mood yet)
4. Finish the books I'm in the middle of.
5. If the sun comes out, try to lessen the pasty white of a stay-at-home that I am right now.

So far, I've completed on book, and have seen two movies. A trip to Corpus is planned for tomorrow - movie and a meeting for Allan.

Book Review: Whiplash by Catherine Coulter. This one took me about 3 weeks because as I said, life has been busy. It was a great story, one of my favorites. I love Sherlock and Savich, and they were great in this book. They were working on two jobs at once, and a few new characters were introduced. The new characters show potential for showing up in future stories. Story #1 involved a US Senator who was seeing his late wife's ghost outside his window. Savich's physic abilities helped to solve this mystery. Story #2 involved a drug company, a murder, and Germans. A really good read. (A)

Movies:
Red Riding Hood - stinker. Allan thought it was terrible, but I was a bit intrigued trying to figure out who the werewolf was. (C-)

Adjustment Bureau - very intriguing. We both enjoyed this movie. Lots of thought provoking ideas about free will. (A-)

On the list for tomorrow: Cedar Rapids

The Long and Busy Weekend

2011-02-19T07:22:00.000-06:00

First thing in the morning and I'm trying to organize my thoughts. Sometimes I wonder if I have adult ADD. Things just whip around in my head so fast I don't know how to make a plan. That's how I'm feeling this morning. So many things I want/need to get done, and no clue as of how to get it done the most efficient way. Groceries...dinner....grading....cleaning....reading.....various errands.... I'm not sure I can even make a list - I feel THAT disorganized.

One thing I do know -- Allan gets home from Arizona tonight!! He's been gone for three days (even though he says we saw each other on Thursday and will see each other tonight so that's only 1 day) and I'm ready for him to be home -- I miss seeing him. He is what makes the sun come out in my day.

Tomorrow after church, we're driving to Abilene to visit Allan's cousin Roberta and pick up some things her mother left for us. It's a long, long drive to make round trip in one day. But I'm looking forward to a road trip with my beloved. It will be good to see Roberta, even if it's only for a short time.

One thing I do know...if I continue to sit on the bed with the dog and cat cuddled up next to me...I'll never get started on my day.

Snow Days

2011-02-05T17:26:00.001-06:00

That's right...you read it correctly...snow days in South Texas! Unfortunately for the child that I am inside, there was no snow. Only a little ice. Not even sleet that you could scoop up and throw at someone. Sigh.

Ice on the old oak tree

Check out those monster icicles

Palm leaves

That was about it for our winter storm of 2011.

But even though I didn't have actual snow to play in on my snow days, they were still a blast. We went out for breakfast both days (plus this morning!) Thursday went to see a movie: The Mechanic. This was, as my dad would have said, a womp stomper. Lots of silly action. But all in all a fun movie. Worth the $6 we paid to see it.

Friday, we spent the day in Corpus. Saw TWO movies in the big city theater. First was The King's Speech. Wow! Great movie about a great king. Excellent in every way. And fun seeing the three Harry Potter cast members in something different. Worth every penny of the $10 we paid. The seats were super comfortable and even rocked. Nice.

Then, a quick lunch at Rudy's Bar-b-que which was delicious.

Finally, Black Swan. ICK. Didn't like it - at- all! I didn't really know much about this movie going in, and I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't that. Very disturbing movie. I guess it was well acted and all, but did NOT like it. I'd like to have the $15.50 back on this one.

So, now we've seen half of the Oscar nominated movies. Still would love to see Toy Story 3. Maybe renting it next week?

House is clean, clothes almost all clean and put away, big pot of Chicken Tortilla Soup in the fridge to reheat, and my Kindle awaits me.

2010 Scrapbook Slideshow

2011-01-29T21:13:00.000-06:00

I've worked like crazy on this, and finally finished it today. The DVD's are made, and they will be in the mail on Monday to my mom, and Allan's parents.

Now I've Gone and Done It

2011-01-29T12:04:00.000-06:00

There's no turning back...I've joined a health club. Technically it's a "Wellness Center." They assessed me; developed a workout plan for me; I've paid for three months; now - I have to go...to workout...to be filled with wellness. Hmmmmm. Three workouts down. I did everything they had for me today - first time for that. We'll see what the next three months bring. Hopefully a healthier me.

Allan has been so great this week. He's had dinner ready every night when I get in from exercising. He did all the cleaning yesterday so I wouldn't have to do it today. Hopefully I can pick up the slack again next week.

Now, for a shower, some menu planning, and trudging out to the dreaded HEB for groceries. YIKES - I hate the grocery store - especially on a Saturday.

MLK Day

2011-01-17T22:21:00.000-06:00

This has been a fairly good Martin Luther King day. If only Allan had been here to spend the day with it would have been perfect.

After seeing Allan off on his Circuit Counselors conference, I started my weekly cleaning (which I had no time to do on Saturday ). Jacob and I had lunch together which was a nice treat. I worked on my 2010 scrapbooking - completed October and have a start on November. Two friends came over for dinner - chili and cornbread - and we talked wedding talk - Lizz is getting married in September. Lastly, I've become totally stuck on 24. Sarah was right. I've watched the first three episodes and am having to force myself to go to bed. Pretty good TV. I have to stop after three and then talk Allan into watching because I think he'd really like it as well.

Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich. I finished reading this book last night. It is supposed to be the first in a new series by Ms. Evanovich. The main character, Deisel, has appeared in the previous between-the-numbers Stephanie Plum novels. This time he teams up with a great character named Lizzy. She is a master cupcake baker. Her circle of wacky friends works in the bakery with her. All in all a good read...maybe not quite as funny as the Stephanie Plum books, but certainly has potential.

Long Weekend

2011-01-14T18:02:00.000-06:00

Thank you Martin Luther King, Jr. for providing me with a three day weekend! I have very few papers to grade so I should get to relax a little. Tomorrow will be busy: another funeral to attend at 11:00 and TAMUK Men's basketball at 3:00. Cleaning, bedding change, grocery shopping to fit in there somewhere! I think I can, I think I can...

Jacob's wisdom teeth extractions went as well as something like that can go. He seems to be healing nicely...still not thrilled with trying to eat regular food, but sneaking some in. He's having a hard time taking his antibiotic since it is the only thing still to take. Other than being a bit cranky, he's back to his normal self.

I plan on finishing the 2010 slideshow on Monday. The song is picked out (I think) and I have October-December pictures to scrapbook and then putting it all together. I think I can, I think I can...

I've loved the wonderful cool weather this week. At least it felt like January for a week. I think we're heading back to the 70's for next week. But it was sure fun bundling up for this week:) I've got cornbread cooking in the oven and beef stew in the crock pot. Yum.

A Heavy Heart

2011-01-05T19:30:00.000-06:00

It is with a heavy heart that I sit at my computer tonight. Bad news abounds. Stress builds. What a way to start a new year. One of my second grade student's father passed away yesterday morning after a lengthy illness. My little Raymond has been so brave and matter of fact. His dad was a fine man, and a faithful, devout Christian. They were honest with Little Raymond - he's known since Thanksgiving that his daddy wasn't going to get well. Brave through it all. My heart breaks for him - so little to lose your daddy.

Another fine Christian lady in our congregation is close to death. The family has gathered. She's lived almost 88 years.

Allan's great-aunt Elsie went to be with Jesus today. He's honored to participate in her funeral service. Another fine, faithful Christian woman. So many loved ones gathered into Jesus' arms.

Stress abounds: dealing with and talking to the students about their classmate's father's passing; watching someone you care about struggle to breathe and communicate; wondering how to get to a funeral 8 hours away and back all in one day? Plus, Jacob has surgery to remove his wisdom teeth on Friday...sigh. Pray continually, take things one moment at a time, pray continually...

2011

2011-01-01T16:42:00.000-06:00

If God is for us, [and He is], who can be against us? Romans 8:31

A new year - 2011. How time flies. We heard a wonderful sermon last night about Romans 8. What a wonderful and comforting piece of scripture. I had a smooth and blessed 2010. There's no guarantee that 2011 will be the same. Many people have faced countless struggles in the past year. How easy it is to feel like everyone is against us. And then God speaks to us through his word. No one can pry us out of His hands. "If God is for us, who can be against us?" As I approach a new year, I pray I will always keep these words close to my heart.

To blog or not to blog. Am I feeling bloggy in this new year? I don't know. There are so many cyber related things that suck up my time. How high a priority do I want to put those things? Blog, classroom blog, school web page, Facebook (!), e-mail, etc. etc. etc. There are, after all, real life, flesh and blood things going on that need my attention. I am a terrible manager and prioritizer of my time. I do feel like trying to blog again this year. But I have a wonderful husband to spend time with; a terrific son to interact with each day; a delightful daughter and her family a mere hour away...I must grasp each and every moment possible with the people that mean the most to me. And my job - talk about poor time management - I have very little spare time at work and I don't always utilize every bit of it...leaves me a bit frantic at moments. Must do better so that I have less to carry home with me. So, I guess I will try to blog. It will be low on my newly formed priority list.

So, if I have any readers left out there, drop me a note and let me know you're there. See you soon!

Spring Break Part 2

2010-03-18T20:20:00.003-06:00

Thursday is drawing to an end...my week almost complete. It has been a wonderful week, and frankly, even though there are only 10 weeks left, am not ready to go back to school. Totally in summer mode. Not a good sign.

I had a great St. Patty's day yesterday. Look here for a short history of St. Patrick. I ran some errands, cooked dessert and soup for church last night. I got in a short time to soak up some vitamin D, and finished this book:

"Blood Game" by Iris Johansen. I always enjoy her Eve Duncan books and this was no exception. It has been quite a while since I read the last one and this refers back to that book quite a bit. As always the story centers around Eve, Joe, Jane and their search for Eve's daughter's body. This book has a big paranormal...ghost...element to it. Also a character named Seth Caleb that seems familiar...must have shown up in another of her books...she likes to do that. It was a really good read, even if it did take me like 3 weeks to read it. Next up...Open Season by C. J. Box.

Finished off the day with a terrific soup dinner at church followed by another awesome Lenten service led by my favorite pastor. Voter's Meeting followed that. Seeing as how I am not a voter, several members thought that we should have our own voters meeting at the parsonage, which we did. Us girls had a great time with their kids, with Allan joining us after the meeting adjourned . A fun end to the day.

Today was a great day. I cleaned the kitchen...top to bottom...mopped the last of the floors. Then the three of us had lunch at Chili's. Then Allan and I went to Wally world and bought this. All I can say is WOW - do I ever love this vacuum! CanNOT believe what a great job it did. And EASY to push. love love LOVE it.

Short little cat nap, followed by the most amazing brats grilled outside by the most amazing grill-master (Allan of course) Served with Sour Kraut, potato salad, rye bread and pickles. Yummy. Then college basketball. Couldn't be better -unless my bracket wasn't already looking so bad:(

Spring Break Part 1

2010-03-16T19:37:00.006-06:00

Boy do I love Spring Break. It's so nice to have time at home to do whatever...to NOT think about school or work. As day 2 is coming to an end, I have to say it's been wonderful.

First, spring cleaning chores completed: I have washed bedding and curtains in both our bedroom and Jacob's. I have cleaned both bathrooms, and hung a new and unmoldy shower curtain liner in Jacob's shower. Still need a new shower caddie - maybe tomorrow. I have dusted almost all the rooms, and cleaned windows in our bedroom and bathroom.

I have tanned once, exercised twice and almost finished reading a book I started weeks ago. We watched some excellent television, most notably episode one of "The Pacific." I thought this was excellent although Allan and Jacob didn't think it was as good as "Band of Brothers." Big Bang Theory was a repeat last night, but an excellent one with Wil Wheaton (which we know from a Family Guy episode - lol)

My most wonderful husband, who thinks he must keep me entertained even though it is his busiest time of year at work, has taken me to two - yes two - movies.

First,
Cop Out. Saw this yesterday. It was pretty entertaining. Bruce Willis can play this part with his eyes closed. There was lots of effing language, but oddly not in an offensive way. Several really funny scenes. It didn't always flow quite right, but was worth the viewing. There's a new Hispanic actress we haven't seen before that looks a lot like Selma Hayek. She was fun to watch. Sean William Scott was hilarious as always. Plus I think I saw Kelly Ripa's hubby in one scene.

Next,
She's out of My League. We saw this this afternoon. Actually was pleasantly surprised. Pretty funny. Jacob saw it Friday and thought it was hilarious, which usually means I won't like it because it will probably be disgusting. lol. I was expecting lots more crude humor and was pleasantly surprised. Allan says it is a total fantasy - that girl would NEVER be interested in that guy. She is gorgeous - like a younger Reece Witherspoon. And even though the guy looks like a young Tom Hanks in the poster, he looks nothing like him in the movie. All in all, likable group of actors and fairly amusing.

FYI - 1 minute is too long to heat a tablespoon of butter in the microwave to melt it without exploding it all over the microwave. sigh.

Edge of Darkness

2010-01-31T21:07:00.003-06:00

We went to see this on Friday movie night. Had read reviews that it was pretty good, but that it didn't compare to the BBC Miniseries that it was based on. That miniseries must be pretty darn good, because this movie was great. Our only complaint was with the sound. Part of this is our small town theater (the speakers were actually buzzing during dialogue, I think), and part is our not 100% hearing capabilities. Some might have been the movie itself. Other sounds were plenty loud, but dialogue was not so good some of the time. Mel Gibson did a good job with this role, not acted as frantically as many of his roles in similar films. His daughter is killed on his front porch, and it is assumed that someone was trying to kill him (he is a Boston police detective.) He soon suspects that is not the case. No spoilers here, so you'll just have to go and see for yourself. Rated R, but the violence is not horribly graphic (although I closed my eyes twice just in case:) Language is a small problem, but not enough to make you crazy.

A Missed Week . . .

2010-01-31T20:41:00.002-06:00

OK, I know I've missed a week. No post last weekend. Almost made it a whole month. How about I do two posts today?? Well I'm doing it anyway, lol.

The last two weeks have been extremely stressful. Things at work have been pretty sucky. The first semester, I had a boy who felt like he was being picked on, and frankly, I should have taken it more seriously. His parents felt like it was in his best interest to remove him from our school. I am always thankful for parents who care about their children (trust me, many don't). I respect them a great deal for making a difficult decision to change schools at mid term, and he is doing great at his new school. His mother, however, felt the need to bring her grievances to the school board (which she has every right to do.) I was extremely disappointed in the school board's response to this issue. I feel like I need some real guidance on discipline - some criteria -- on what discipline to give and when to do it, etc. They basically told me they didn't approve of my discipline plan, but had no suggestions on how to change/improve it. Meeting was shelved until later in the week to address this issue. However, instead of addressing the issue I needed help with, they picked over my daily schedule and after 2+ hours decided that I was teaching subjects at the wrong times during the day, that my students had too much recess, and that I should only have 15 minutes each day for both planning and lunch. Which directly contradicts what they said in our meeting (that I should have 30 minutes for lunch AND 30 minutes planning each day). I guess they discovered what we had already told them. Three teachers cannot have this much time off AND have 2 teachers supervising students at recess and lunch. huh. Plus they didn't like that I had the children miss recess as a consequence for unacceptable behavior, yet later took away 30 minutes of recess daily from the entire class. wow. It's been a very frustrating time...rant complete.

January is for Organizing

2010-01-17T16:19:00.003-06:00

That's what I hear anyway. That's what we're trying to do, for sure. We've purchased shelving units (3) for the garage, and have promptly filled them up (almost). We have a truckload of things for Goodwill which will be delivered tomorrow or Tuesday. The sorting through, throwing away, and filing in the proper place is still underway. I went through an entire basket yesterday, filing only a few papers, and trashing everything else.

Have you seen that show about Hoarders? Our problem is that my beloved husband is a profound anti-hoarder, and I lean toward the hoarding side. Not like these poor people on the TV show, but I do think of most things as mementos. So he runs across a bin of things I've saved, and can't believe I've saved it. lol. I'm learning I don't need to keep every little thing. I'm toting off tons of sports equipment tomorrow. Who knows why I kept all that stuff. You should have seen all the flat balls I dug out yesterday. Luckily the dumpster had room.

Wish me common sense as I continue sorting!

I Hereby Resolve . . .

2010-01-09T14:54:00.002-06:00

To post on my blog once a week (along with this means keeping up and commenting on my cyber friends' blogs.
To lose 25 pounds (not 20 and gain back 18 like last year) You may follow my progress in my sidebar ---->
To plan my meals on a weekly basis and be prepared each evening to cook said meals.
To keep up with the housework so my beloved husband doesn't have to do it himself.
To stay in the Word with at least a small daily Bible reading.
To NOT let myself get behind on grading so I don't have to spend a marathon weekend before grades are due.
To read something from Wall Street Journal online at least every other day.

There you have it. A very small list of things I'd like to strive to do better this year.

Eckert 2009 Video/Slideshow

2010-01-04T08:07:00.003-06:00

I worked like a fiend to finish this before I go back to work. I hope that my few readers enjoy it.

A New Year, A New Decade

2010-01-03T21:52:00.002-06:00

On this, my last Sunday evening before returning to work, I'm reflecting over the last year. As I look back over the year, I think of the many joys this year has brought. I was filled with pride as my baby graduated from high school. My beloved first-born gave birth to her second child. God has richly blessed Sarah and Joey - they are wonderful, loving parents and have delightful children. Jessa is so, so smart, has personality like I've never seen in a 2 year old, and is a total sweetheart. Josiah is such a good baby...obviously loves his momma and daddy, and is so patient and good.

I lost almost 20 pounds in the first 8 months of the year (YIPEE) and gained 18 back in the last 4 months (I blame the school children). Maybe I'll do better this year.

Jacob went off to college, and did not love it. He has moved home to go to school here. He seems like his old self again, happy to be working and doing the things he loves. We spent much time in prayer for him those 4 months.

Allan and I celebrated 25 wonderful years of marriage. I am daily thankful to God for blessing me with such a wonderful husband. I totally never deserved such a man, that's for sure.

So as the new year begins, I strive to be a loving and supportive wife, to live a healthy life, to enjoy every minute with my children and grandchildren, to be the best teacher I'm able to be. I can do nothing without God. So my continued prayer is for the Lord to continue to bless me and show me the way I should go.

Thanksgiving Eve

2009-11-25T15:20:00.002-06:00

Wow! The day before Thanksgiving. Where has the year gone, and boy am I glad for a few days away from school. I can hardly wait until my entire little family is gathered once again at the Thanksgiving table. Jacob arrived home last night. Sarah and her family are coming tomorrow mid-morning. This will be Josiah's first Thanksgiving. I haven't seen the kids since last month, and I know they've changed so much--especially Josiah. This will also be Jessa's first Thanksgiving at Grandma and Granpa's house -- I hope she likes the eatin's.

I approach the approaching Advent season with mixed emotions, as usual. I love this season . . .the cooking, the choosing of presents, the decoration of the house and of course the anticipation of our Lord's birth. But on the flip side . . . massive social obligations, lots of work related things (church services, programs, papers to grade, report cards, decoration of the classroom...) I miss my mom a lot during the holidays. I always wish she could be here with us for these occasions with such strong family foundations.

For day 1 of the season, I have cleaned the house in anticipation of tomorrow's guests. My cornbread is baked for the stuffing, one buttermilk pie done, one cheesecake baking as I type, 6 eggs hard-boiled, rugs washed, clothes washing, and one apple pie yet to do. Plus dinner in a bit. Plus church later on.

I LOVE cooking a holiday dinner. I'm not sure why, but I get such satisfaction out of the whole thing. I guess just knowing people are looking forward to it makes me feel all warm and happy. Sarah's bringing two of the sides, so that will make tomorrow even easier. Plus there is the ATM vs. UT game and probably a Cowboy game to watch, and then dinner/dessert at friends at the end of the day. I can hardly wait!

25th Anniversary

2009-10-18T19:10:00.002-05:00

Our 25th anniversary was this past Tuesday. We've spent a lot of time thinking back over the years of our marriage. Time seems to have flown by, yet also seems to have stood still. Weird how that works. We were just kids back then - really. Our parents must have been worried sick. Thank God for them and how supportive they were. Our pastor says he though that either I would pass out or Allan would hyperventilate. All I remember is having a vice grip on Allan's hand. He's still holding me up today:) So many joys, challenges, trials, and blessings upon blessings from God. We had a precious little place to live those first 6 months we were married. Dirt cheap (which is what we could afford)! The faith my parents must have had in us to co-sign on our first home. How we loved that little house. Taking our first income tax refund check to the mall and buying the dining table where we still eat every meal. I remember sitting at that table coloring and cutting out letters for Allan's 'Happy Birthday' sign on his first birthday after our marriage. (This sign still gets hung up each year on his special day.) I remember bringing home our precious baby girl and hoping we knew what to do. We did. We both finished college and had numerous jobs back in those days. I think back to all the things we packed 10 years later when we moved to Indiana. When we moved to that house, it took two trips and a Suburban. Jacob was born, completing our family. We lost two babies in that year before going to the seminary. Those babies would be in high school now. Allan's sister and her husband needed a house to rent just as we were moving. What a blessing not to have to sell a house at that stressful time. Our years at the seminary were full of God's richest blessings...to many to count...so many miracles. I was blessed to have children to watch in our home, allowing me to stay home. When we moved back to Texas 12 years ago, I remember selling my stove/oven. Allan had gotten this for me when Jacob was born, and it broke my heart to sell it...it was the best present, but there was no place for it here. Our years in Kingsville have been good. Allan's work here is good. He is well respected and loved by our church. I am blessed to teach in our little school - and to have been there during Jacob's early school years. Sarah met her husband here, and has a wonderful life and family of her own now. Jacob has made lifelong friends here. Somehow, we managed to grow up over these last 25 years. We still consider the other our best friend. There is no one I'd rather spend time with. Every day is a joy to wake up knowing I have another day to spend with Allan. God's greatest miracle was bringing us together 25 years ago. I can't wait for the next 25!

Wonderful Weekend

2009-10-11T14:54:00.002-05:00

We just arrived home from a great weekend in San Antonio. It was a pre-anniversary getaway, and boy was it great! The weather was wonderfully cool (wore a sweater!). We walked on the river, at some great food. Shiloh's was terrific. Hotel was beautiful. They had a delicious breakfast buffet. Super nice to not have to go out to get something first thing. We slept late, napped, checked out downtown by evening and daylight. Super nice and relaxing weekend.

NOTE: There is not one place in downtown San Antonio to buy a book, magazine or newspaper. It almost became a quest. (Correction, we did find one place with basketball magazines and porn, but that wasn't really what we were looking for.) Maybe that's why they're one of the stupidest cities in America:)

Nobel Prize...huh

One Long Week

2009-09-20T20:46:00.001-05:00

This has been one of the longest feeling weeks that I've had in a while. Allan had a conference Monday - Wednesday, and that just started things off on a bad foot. Jacob had been home for the weekend, but left Sunday afternoon. We got flu shots on Saturday, and I had a fever all day Tuesday and most of Wednesday. I was a bit overcome with loneliness on Tuesday. I called and chatted with Sarah at lunchtime, and that really cheered me up.

At work, I feel like I am barely hanging on by a thread. It feels as if I will fall terribly behind if I let up even a little bit. (You should have seen my stack of papers needing to be graded this weekend. - sigh

This weekend was taken up a lots with activities for our neighboring church's pastor's retirement. He had a very nice party on Saturday, and his retirement service on Sunday. Allan put together a beautiful service, and everything was so nice. It will not be the same without Gil around the office at school.

And now it is Sunday night...My lesson plans are printed, my parent letter done, my October newsletter written, class webpage updated...sadly - more papers to grade - or not to grade, that is the question...

Big Bang Theory

2009-09-01T20:06:00.004-05:00

Now you guys know that we don't watch a lot of TV, and most of what we watch is old anyway. But this show, which for 6 weeks we haven't missed, is out of this world funny. I'm not sure why we watched that first Monday, but we are hooked. This show is laugh-out-loud funny. The characters are hilarious. Pretty much, a bunch of college science professors...total brainiacs...science fiction (think Star Trek) fans ...socially inept guys. Plus one normal, knock-out neighbor girl. If you've not watched this, you gotta check it out.

First Week of School

2009-08-29T13:40:00.007-05:00

The first week is done, 35 more to go. It was a great first week. The second graders are having a little trouble with the lack of free time. They are not used to having a full day of work, but they have coped quite well. Apparently they have worn me out, because I was so tired by last night that I snored like a train:) Here are my little darlings.

Jacob's first week in College Station was not as exciting as we had all hoped, although he did have some excitement when a mom scratched the side of his new truck backing out. But it is at the shop and will hopefully be repaired by next week. He doesn't cope well with too much spare time, and I know on Monday when classes begin he will be more at ease. Here he is right before leaving. I am not posting the picture with the ridiculous crying mother!

We visited Sarah and Joey before Jacob left, and had a great visit with the kids. Jessa loves her new brother and is totally fascinated with him. Both kids had good check-ups last week. Sarah is feeling almost back to normal. Here's some pictures from our visit.

Josiah Wesley

2009-08-17T22:06:00.004-05:00

He's here!!!!!!!! Josiah arrived this afternoon. 9 pounds 1 ounce, 22.5 inches. Dad, Mom and Baby are doing great on their first evening together. More news as it happens.

Back To School Prep

2009-08-14T13:10:00.002-05:00

So many things to do...so many changes about to happen.

I've been hard at work (sorta) on my classroom. I'm in pretty good shape. My room is set up, lesson plans started, some copies made. Still need to order the gradebook, complete lesson plans, get textbooks set out, labels made with student names, and of course...more copies!

Our precious baby Josiah is due to arrive on Monday! Sarah is ready for his delivery, and we are all so excited to meet him! Lots of anticipation around here. I've made and frozen some casseroles for after she comes home. Prayers are continually being prayed for a safe delivery for both he and Sarah.

Jacob leaves for college in a week. I frankly don't know what our lives will be like without him here. I don't know if I have enough brain power have the deep conversations that we have with him. lol. We're looking forward to being a couple again, and worrying only about our own schedules. Things will definitely be quieter around here.

Now for more school work...

Julie and Julia

2009-08-08T12:49:00.004-05:00

Went to see "Julie & Julia" yesterday. We've been waiting for weeks, and it was worth the wait. I'd read the book back in 2006 when it was published and loved it. The movie was excellent! Meryl Streep - what can you say. . . she was superb as she is in everything. For those of us who remember Julia Child, she was a carbon copy. Everything was well acted. It was funny, heart-warming, tender...all good. Well worth the price of admission ($3 each for us - thank you budget-friendly Kingsville theater!)

Now for other news. . . our grandson, Josia, is scheduled to make his appearance Monday the 17th! We can hardly wait to meet him:)

I've gone and burned the hummingbird food and now the house is smelling aweful! It's all the computer's fault.

Allan has helped me arrange the furniture in my classroom, so now all that's left is putting up the decorations, making the first lesson plans, and organizing books and stuff. Not a bad start for day one.

Found out today that Jacob got another scholarship for $3,500 - could NOT be more pleased!

Back in Town

2009-08-06T14:46:00.002-05:00

My trip to Fort Worth was great. Mom's cataract surgery went great - no unexpected problems. It was great to see her. Three times in one summer! Nice.

First thing back, I had my yearly physical. Everything fine, and I am thrilled with my blood results. Chol. 204 (down 1) Triglycerides 261 (down from 459) Hdl 39 (up 35) and Ldl 113 (unmeasurable last year). I am pumped. Plus, down 17 pounds.

I was so encouraged I went to realage.com and took the quiz to see what my "real" age was...40.4 (6 year less than I am). Not bad, ehhh??

Road Trip to Fort Worth

2009-07-27T15:09:00.007-05:00

I completed Jacob's quilt, on schedule...thank you very much. It is not perfect by any means, but I am satisfied with it, and more importantly...Jacob seems to love it.
I'm hard at work on my next project.

I've been working steadily on scrapbook pages. (See sidebar!) My goal is to have 2006 completed and be 100% caught up with 2009 when school starts. I'm taking the laptop with me to Fort Worth to maybe work some while there. Also traveling with me will be my other project and Harry Potter #7. (My memory needs refreshing - can't remember how it all turned out!)

I'll be leaving Wednesday for Fort Worth. Mom is having cataract surgery Thursday and I will play chauffeur for several days. Can't wait to see her. Jacob and his buddy Guillermo left for their Fort Worth Road Trip today. They are anxious to do and have as much fun possible in six days there!

I've also been busy trying out the whole Facebook thing. The question is...CAN you teach an old dog new tricks?? I've have a bit of fun with it so far.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

2009-07-15T21:57:00.003-05:00

What a great day! We went to see the sixth installment of the Harry Potter movies. We've been anticipating it for weeks. We watched each of the previous five movies, one each day for the last 5 days. The Half-Blood Prince was worth the wait. It was excellent. Lots of humor, to counter the drama and scary parts. Of course, for anyone who has read the book, there will be no real surprises. Big shocks for those who haven't read the book. Ron and Hermoine's interaction is wonderfully acted, and Ginny's character really shines in this movie. Draco is wonderfully evil, yet your heart feels for him and his situation. The special effects are 'brilliant.' Especially the opening sequences almost made me queasy. Every one of the 155 minutes of this film is worth sitting in the theater. Sit back and enjoy!

Where has Summer Gone?

2009-07-13T20:15:00.005-05:00

It is already the middle of July, and it seems school was out just days ago. We've been running all summer, it seems. I thought I'd give an update on Summer so far.

We started the month of June with Jacob's last week of high school. He graduated 6th in his class in what was a fairly nice ceremony. Except for being packed into a very overheated facility! We had a nice day, and enjoyed Sarah and her family sharing it with us.

The next week was our church's annual Vacation Bible School. As always this was a total blast! I was in charge of Rocky's PreSchool Clubhouse, and had 9 wonderful 4 year olds. What fun:)

Following this, we traveled to College Station for Jacob's New Student Orientation. This was two extremely well organized days of very informative stuff! Not a moment of our time was wasted. We came home with Jacob's schedule done, ID card in hand, sports pass ready to roll, meal plan picked, PO Box done, and books ordered. Time well spent.

Jessa's birthday comes next. We had a great day with Sarah and Jessa. We got her a bubble blowing lawn mower which she loved. She had a funfetti cake with pink icing. It was great seeing them again so soon.

We traveled to Dallas after this for our Texas District LCMS convention. That was smooth sailing, and the bonus was we got to get together with my mom and Allan's family for dinner. It is always so great to get to see the family.

Then last week, Allan and I got to babysit for Jessa for the day while Sarah and Joey spent a day together just the two of them. I know I'm the Grandma, but she is the most wonderful little girl. She has got loads and LOADS of personality, and is SO SMART. We had the best time ever.

I've been busily working on an A&M quilt for Jacob to use in the dorm. Hopefully it will be complete by weeks end. That's what I'm shooting for anyway. I'll post a picture once it's done.

Lice

2009-03-28T20:29:00.005-06:00

Yes, you read it right -- lice...they can really louse up a week. lol. But really, what a week. My entire class has been infested with the awful critters. I have sent kids home day after day after day. It's really hard to get a lot accomplished with only 2 or 3 kids in attendance. Now I'm praying that after an all clear Friday... on Monday everyone is still OK. Thank goodness my head isn't itching! Cute aren't they??

Back to School

2009-03-23T20:08:00.002-06:00

Yes, today was my first day back...sigh... But seriously, I have the greatest job ever. As far as teaching jobs go, this is top notch. None of the nonsense that goes with public school, and all the perks of small classes, involved parents, and great co-workers.

Here's my list from last week:

1. Take all recycling to the recycling center. DONE ON TUESDAY
2. Clean our office from top to bottom (hopefully throwing away mountains of stuff!) SORT OF DONE - ONE BAG OF TRASH, AND MAJOR DUSTING.
3. Sort through my cloths and take bags to Goodwill. ONE BAG AND 2 MATTRESSES (thanks for the help Jacob!)
4. Tan (If we get some sunny weather after last weeks cold and drizzle.) THREE DAYS - MINOR TAN LINES.
5. Read the new Vince Flynn book. (Preferable while accomplishing #4) EXCELLENT, AS THEY ALWAYS ARE.
6. Take a mid-day bike ride each day. 3 DAYS (INCLUDING RETURNING #5)
7. Repair the sofa ruffle. (Darn those cats:) DONE
8. Update the web pages I'm responsible for. DONE
9. Clean house. (Although last on the list, this will be top priority - my beloved does this each week so I don't have to so I'm going to beat him to it this week.) 90% COMPLETE

Also did 3 scrapbook pages from 2006 and filed several packages of photos into albums.

Two exciting things today...another case of head lice...ick...and Dancing w/the Stars. Loved it. How cute is Ty. Wonder who will go home tomorrow???

My Return to Blogging

2009-03-16T09:42:00.003-06:00

Today is the first day of Spring Break. I started this blog almost exactly two years ago, and am shocked that I haven't posted since August. Life is just so busy it seems. But I have in fact continued to eavesdrop on all my cyber buddies all this time, and hope to begin commenting again. Things are busy at our house. In a mere 3 months my youngest child will be graduating from high school. Then in a few months he'll be off to Aggieland. We've been busy with scholarship applications (his favorite thing to do! - NOT) David moved back home at Thanksgiving, and is moving back with us next week while his mother undergoes radiation. So, in the spirit of being organized and making a list, here is a list of things I'd like to accomplish during my week of vacation:

1. Take all recycling to the recycling center.
2. Clean our office from top to bottom (hopefully throwing away mountains of stuff!)
3. Sort through my cloths and take bags to Goodwill.
4. Tan (If we get some sunny weather after last weeks cold and drizzle.)
5. Read the new Vince Flynn book. (Preferable while accomplishing #4)
6. Take a mid-day bike ride each day.
7. Repair the sofa ruffle. (Darn those cats:)
8. Update the web pages I'm responsible for.
9. Clean house. (Although last on the list, this will be top priority - my beloved does this each week so I don't have to so I'm going to beat him to it this week.)

So that's it. I'll let you know this weekend how I did.

Farewell to Tom

2008-08-09T11:52:00.002-05:00

We lost a faithful friend of our family this week. Our - well technically not our - Siamese stray tomcat...Tom to us. He was a terrific old cat. I don't even have a picture of him to share. He's been coming around our house for years now. Hangs around a week or so and then moves on for months at a time. He had this huge head, and huge paws and claws that you knew meant business. He always loved human attention...having his head rubbed, sitting in your lap, or rubbing around your legs. Anytime a storm or cold spell came around, we'd find Tom curled up on a blanket in the garage - he knew where to come for shelter. Wednesday morning, the dogs made a racket, and Jacob went out front to see what was up. There were three big dogs attacking him in the yard. (Why can't people keep their pets in a fence! Why is that so hard!) He chased them away, and Tom ran off. Later that morning when we were leaving, we found him curled up under the car, and he died right in front of us. Jacob buried him in the backyard. He was just a cat, but I'm still a bit torn up by the whole thing. Especially when I saw how nice Jacob had fixed his spot. Stupid dogs.

2008 Scrapbook Slideshow

2008-07-27T14:13:00.004-05:00

Charlie Bit Me

2008-07-16T18:49:00.005-05:00

For my long awaited return, I've chosen this youtube video, which for some reason makes me chuckle. I wish I knew how to put the screen itself on, which many of you do, but I just don't have that much blog smarts.

I know it's been forever since my last post, it seems that way anyway. I just haven't been able to get motivated to blog. As I told my mother several weeks ago...things in our house have been outstanding, but it seems like once we step outside things fall apart. It's been a very busy, and often sad, time -- these last few months. It's hard to even know where to begin.

Our German friend Markus has safely returned home to Germany. His family and friends are thrilled to have him home. It was such a pleasure to get to know him, and have him share our home.

Jacob finished the year ranked 8th in his class. He went right to work the Monday after school was out. He is working as a cotton breeder. He and two other men keep the weeds out, cross pollinate the cotton plants, and later will harvest their hybrid cotton to obtain seeds for next year. He enjoys being outside, the nice hours (no weekends, 30-40 hrs/week), it's close to home (gas = $$), and the wage is good.

Our good friend who was battling cancer went to be with the Lord July 4th. She was such a blessing to our family, and the faith, bravery, and courage that she faced her illness with was incredible to see. Here is a picture of my great boys at her memorial service.
Our good friend, David, Jacob, and her grandson -- Jacob's best friend -- Paeton

Speaking of David, his mother is also very ill with cancer. She is out of town receiving treatment, and David is living with us. (Currently he is with her until school begins, and then he will return to our house.) He's an awesome young man, and now occupies Sarah's/Markus' room.

We took a quick trip to check out some colleges and also to visit our families in Ft. Worth. We walked around A&M, UTA, UNT, TCU, and UT. Jacob is still headed for Aggie-town unless something changes once school begins. We had a great visit with our families, Jacob checked out the July 4th fireworks, and was very impressed. His Grampy surprised him by putting together a complete Craftsmen tool set for his truck. Was he ever thrilled.

I've read several books while on vacation: Fearless Fourteen, by Janet Evanovich; Phantom Prey, by John Sandford; Nothing to Lose, by Lee Child; and Barefoot, by Elin Hilderbrand. Fearless Fourteen was terrific - introduced several new characters --A+. Barefoot was very well written. The subject matter hit a little too close to home, not a feel good summer read. The other two books were worth reading, since I love Lucas Davenport and Jack Reacher, but nothing spectacular about them.

We've been to see several movies: Indiana Jones; Wanted; Get Smart; Wall-E. All were good, but Get Smart was probably my favorite of the four. Watched Live Free or Die Hard last night - we've had this movie since Christmas and just watched it (you can tell how often we watch movies at home:) Loved it - definitely one of the better ones.

Our granddaughter had her first birthday. She is such an angel. Very beautiful and sweet. She took to us right away - very friendly and good tempered. Sarah had us over and she fixed the best meal: chicken Parmesan, pasta, salad, bread and of course birthday cake. Everything was so tasty - we were stuffed. It was great to get to see them all again.

I don't know what else to write. Maybe more later??

I Know....I Know.....I Know

2008-04-17T19:18:00.004-05:00

I know I missed my weekend post. AND I know it's almost the weekend again already (yipee). But this has been a crazy time. First, my reviews:

"Where Angels Go," by Debbie Macomber. This is a delightful book. It appears that she has written other books, and I'm definitely looking for them at the library. My friend, Susan, had checked this out last week, and gave it to me to read. (She is having a heart attack about now because it's due tomorrow and she knows I rarely return a book on time - but I'll take it by after school tomorrow:) It is a Christmas story about the guardian angels Shirley, Goodness and Mercy and their assignments that Gabriel gives them for the week leading up to Christmas. Apparently they tend to get into a bit of trouble every time they're sent to Earth. It's fairly theologically OK, and just a beautiful story. A++

"Nim's Island" Allan and I went to see this last Friday, and WOW. This is a great adventure movie. It is creative, funny, sensitive, well acted...we just loved this movie. Two weekends -- two great movies. Probably be months before that happens again!

At school, I've been buried in achievement tests and testing. Last week we tested every day. Because we're a small school, the teachers score their own tests, and do all the results themselves. This is a brain numbing/back breaking job. There are chart after chart of tiny numbers and columns and rows that all have to be kept just so. But it's done now and I am currently half way through parent conferences.

Our niece was confirmed in Fort Worth the Sunday after Easter, and I just got her gift in the mail today. I hate not being able to be at such important events. Since we've been here, we've missed one high school graduation, and 3 confirmations. It makes me sad. She is an awesome young lady...terrific student...amazing ballerina...and a very serious and devout Christian. We love her to pieces.

The biggest news of all: My wonderful friend - who lives in New Orleans - her mother has been very ill for the past month with cancer. We have prayed for her since we met ten years ago that she would know the love that Christ has for her. My friend spoke some pointed words to her mother several years ago, which has been in the back of her mind all this time. Her mother called Allan Monday and said told him she wanted to learn about Christ, join the church and be baptised (I'm tearing up yet again just typing this). Tomorrow, she's being baptised at her home with her close friends nearby. She is positively glowing with the love of Christ. Needless to say, my friend is crazy happy and thankful to God for his answering of prayers. Amen.

Post Austin...Various Reviews

2008-04-06T19:37:00.005-05:00

We had a great time in Austin. The weather was a bit dreary, with clouds and some rain, so no pool time. Allan thought the speakers were awesome, and I enjoyed lazing around. I finished a book, watched a movie and took several very long naps. We walked around 6th Street on Tuesday night, ate at a terrific restaurant, and enjoyed the sights. We peeked in an almost empty Coyote Ugly bar, laughed at the Modeling agency/Chinese massage sign, took in the beautiful capital building at night and checked out all the groovy UT students walking around campus.

I finished reading "Home to Holly Springs" by Jan Karon. As always, her book about Father Tim returning to his home town was terrific. She is a wonderful storyteller. I often wonder if she is a PK, or what connection she has to pastors, because in all the books, she gets it just right. This is a terrific book. Tim goes back to his home town, looking for someone who wrote him a letter simply saying "Come Home." While there he meets new people, and finds old acquaintances. The story is filled with flashbacks of things that have happened to him as a child. Wonderful book! If you're not familiar with this author, start at the beginning and be prepared for wonderful stories.

While at the hotel, I brought a DVD of "The Guardian" with Kevin Costner and Aston Kutcher. I had wanted to see this when it first came out, and Jacob has watched it several times. I haven't liked Costner in a movie in years, but he was good in this movie. The movie had a "Heartbreak Ridge" feel about it for much of the movie. I thought it was a great movie, and am glad I finally watched it. Well worth the time spent at the desk.

Allan and I went to see "21" Friday night. Being a math wiener, I had to see this movie. In our local paper, it got 2 1/2 stars, but I thought it was much better than that. Here's a movie about Las Vegas - no nudity - amazing! It was really good and we had a good time watching it. Jacob went to see it last night and he liked it too. Check it out!

Markus went on a day trip to Mexico with other exchange students yesterday, and seemed to have a great time. He's had a bit of allergy problems, but hopefully he's on the mend.

Jacob spent yesterday at the local airshow - checked out the blue angels and all the other planes. That means that today he has spent doing all the homework he didn't do on Saturday:)

We do our achievement tests this week. I'm nervous. Maybe they'll do good...

Off to Austin

2008-03-30T21:16:00.002-06:00

My hubby and I are off to Austin in the morning for a pastor's conference. Yes, that's right, three days alone with my beloved (well there might be a few other people there, but who's counting!) I've actually taken 3 personal days, so no kids 'til Thursday - woooo whooooo. I'm taking a small amount of work with me, some needlework, and a good book. But most of all, I'm looking forward to the time with Allan.

See ya on Thursday!

TAGGED! 7 Things About Me

2008-03-25T16:14:00.002-06:00

I was tagged by Juloyes over at Accindental Pastor's Wife. So here are the rules:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

I'm thinking these up as I'm typing, so bear with me.

1. Unlike Juloyes, I totally hate exercise...much prefer a bag of chips and a great book, or even a good book.

2. My favorite candy bar is Reece's Peanut Butter Cups - which totally stinks since my apparent sudden peanut allergy.

3. As a teenager and twenty-something I couldn't listen to enough classic rock...I was all about The Who, The Rolling Stones, etc...now I listen to Texas country almost all the time - check out Kevin Fowler for something different!

4. There is no way I could go for even a few hours without my glasses...can't see a THING!

5. I played the trombone in high school (but I did NOT have tape holding my glasses together - no matter what my hubby says!)

6. I never had a cat, or even wanted one (totally a dog person) until 5 years ago when Sarah brought Bob home. Now I love 'em (we have 6 now!)

7. Last, but most importantly - God has blessed me with the perfect husband. We are meant for each other...best of friends, confidants, no one we'd rather be with but each other, make you sick we're so in love kind of couple. We met in high school, but never dated until college. God brought us together, no question about it. He is the best and most wonderful part of me.

So now, I have to tag 7 more people...who to pick...

Tara

Jules

Me

Jennifer

Constance

NEK & EAKs Mom

Mammy

Easter Sunday's - Yesterday's and Today

2008-03-23T21:03:00.007-06:00

I always get sentimental at times like these. I have spent a lot of time this week thinking back to Sarah's first Easter. She wasn't yet even a year old. Our family had a great and fun tradition. After church, everyone changes clothes, and loads up their picnic lunches and meet at the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens. We had the same spot every year. We'd enjoy being together, eat our lunch, and take a walk to "smell the roses." At this point, the Easter Bunny (aka Grampy) would hide the Easter eggs. On our return, the hunt would begin. My husbands' family had been doing this for years. For Sarah's first Easter, his youngest sister continued the egg hunting - even though she was 12! My parents joined the crowd, and it was always a nice time. After all that, we would walk over to the Japanese Gardens for a tour, and feed the giant gold fish. We did this every year until we moved. The rest of the family continue to celebrate Easter in just this way, even today!

Now that Sarah has her own family, I know how special all those firsts are. But these times make me miss being together with all our extended family. (Was she not the cutest baby ever?)

So today, with extended family far away, we surrounded ourselves with friends. All our Godchildren were in town and at church. We got a rare photo with all of them.We even managed to drag Jacob away from teen-age food and fun for a quick family pic.

We had several families from church over to share our Easter feast. Everyone shared lots of laughter and good times. The funniest thing that happened:

My friend asked to bring something, and we decided on a potato casserole. She mixed it up ahead of time, intending to bake it at church right after Sunday School was over. (We live right next door, and I use both ovens to cook in :) She put in the the refrigerator before church. We were in the kitchen after church, and she said, "Oh, you already got my casserole out." I hadn't even looked for it yet! So we look around, and her dish is sitting out nice and clean and empty! Turns out, the ladies set it out for the brunch! UNCOOKED! Can you even imagine?? I then recall seeing it out on the table and wondering what in the world that was? My friend was really glad her dish didn't have her name on it! Don't you think that it would be obvious that a potato casserole was not a breakfast item - especially an uncooked one. We laughed all afternoon about it. And I had all the ingredients to mix up another one.

National Lutheran School Week

2008-03-09T19:09:00.004-06:00

We just wrapped up Lutheran School Week. The kids all had a good time. Here are our cuties all decked out in their team shirts on Monday. We just finished running relay races.

We had red day, a Christian art contest, silly hat day, Christian writing contest, pajama day, movie and popcorn day, Bible bowl, crazy dress day, and wheel day. Everyone enjoyed the special activities and treats.

At church, our confirmation students came to the house for our annual pizza/study party on Saturday. It's their last opportunity to review all their questions (200+) before the public examination...which was this morning. The kids did great! Next week we'll have 4 kids confirmed.

Spring Cleaning

2008-03-09T19:06:00.002-06:00

Spring cleaning has begun with a whisper - not a roar - but it has begun. This weekend I:

1) Washed curtains from two bedrooms
2) Washed seat covers of my son's truck

Whew - aren't you impressed at the lightning pace I'm going :)

Curves

2008-03-09T19:04:00.002-06:00

Well, I did it...went to Curves for the first time Wednesday, and again on Thursday. Isn't that something? Lost 2 pounds during the week, and gained them back this weekend. *sigh* Fried fish and shrimp on Friday (yum), pizza on Saturday, lunch and dinner out tonight. Back on track though tomorrow.

March Already??

2008-03-02T16:05:00.003-06:00

March 2...where does the time go? If only we could slow it down...You hear it said that when someone is dying their life flashes before their eyes...I feel that way most of the time. It seems just like yesterday that I had two little kids at home - reading stories and cuddling on the couch. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change a thing! I'm so proud of those kids. Sarah's found her perfect place in life with a great husband and a beautiful little girl. She has blossomed and thrived being a wife and mother, and I'm so glad she heard God's calling to that role. So many women miss it, and consequently miss the joys that come with that role. Jacob has grown into a fine young man. Still a boy in some ways, but responsible and mature in ways appropriate for his age:) Like Sarah, he is an excellent student, and doesn't grouse too much about it. lol.

This week, Jacob had a craving for Kraft Macaroni and Cheese please. He asked me to please go to the store, buy some, and cook it up for him. I, of course, did just that. He poured it into a bowl, and spooned it down in no time. He looked up and said, "Thank you so much for fixing this...it is so good." I asked him if it made him feel like a boy again to which he replyed, "Yeah, I think it does." I told him he just needed fish sticks to go with it. "I forgot fish sticks even existed!" I love the moments where his little boy side shines through.

Markus had another loss in Soccer on Friday. He did discover that the opponents had an exchange student from Germany, too. He enjoyed their short visit.

Jacob had tennis on Friday and didn't play as well as he would have liked. The good side was he played on the courts right outside my classroom, so I could peek out the window at him, and he picked me up for lunch. Lunch was nice, I think the first time we've ever had lunch together during school.

Saturday was busy. We drove to Corpus for a choir concert in the afternoon. Our choir director was singing in a concert. It was very good, and I'm glad we decided to go. After returning, we had a bar-b-q to attend. My friend from school's son is leaving for the Air Force tomorrow, and they had a big send off for him. The food was excellent, and Terrell is such a nice young man I was glad to be there for his party.

Next week is Lutheran School Week, so we have lots of fun things planned for the kids. My main job today is grading. Maybe 100's for everyone??

Shadow Dance

2008-03-02T15:56:00.003-06:00

This is the second book by Julie Garwood that I've read. As it turns out, it picked up where the other book left off. I like reading books with continuing characters. This books main character, Jordan, was a minor character in the other book. Jordan travels to Texas to meet up with an odd Professor who supposedly has researched a feud between two families...one of which is hers. He tells her that her family are brutes. Jordan's intent is to prove his research faulty. But once she arrives in the little town of Serenity, Texas. People begin to be killed. They seem to turn up in her trunk every time. The romance between herself and FBI agent Noah is of the cookie-cutter variety. It is almost word for word like the romance between the two characters in the other book. I don't care for this much - it will be interesting if in other books this same pattern is followed. Other than the romance part, this was a good story and kept my attention.

2008-02-26T20:06:00.002-06:00

How I feel when no one comments.

Lemon Tart with Almond Crust

2008-02-23T16:00:00.003-06:00

I had a request for the dessert I served after our Valentine's Day dinner. You can find it in the Taste of Home Feb-Mar '08 edition. Here it is:

1 C. all purpose flour
1/2 C. sliced almonds, toasted (Forgot to toast mine)
1/4 C. sugar
6 T. cold butter
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/4 tsp. salt
2-3 T. cold water

FILLING
1 C. sugar
3/4 C. lemon juice (I used out of a bottle)
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
2 T grated lemon peel
dash salt
6 T butter, cubed

Place the flour, almonds, sugar, butter, extract and salt in a food processor. Cover and pulse until blended. Gradually add water, 1 Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until mixture forms a soft dough.

Press onto the bottom and up the sides of a greased (with unspoiled shortening - lol inside joke) 9-in. fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Bake at 400F for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

In large heavy saucepan, whisk the first six filling ingredients until blended. Add butter; cook and stir over low heat for 7-8 minutes or until thickened. (I cooked much longer and never got what I would call thickened?) Strain; pour into crust. Bake at 325F for 8-10 minutes (mine took 15 minutes) or until set. Cool on wire rack. Refrigerate leftovers. (I made mine the night before and refrigerated overnight.)

It DID turn out very delicious - very tart and lemony. We all enjoyed it.

Teenagers and Money Woes

2008-02-23T15:43:00.005-06:00

Last weekend, my 17 yo son decided to see if he could work at the farm on Saturdays...seems he's having a bit of trouble budgeting his money...his dad suggested he simply spend less. "But that means less fun," was his reply. Later, he said he guessed Dad was right, he'd just have less fun. Wednesday night at church, his pocket was full of change...it appears he's been using change for lunch money all week.

We've tried something new with him, since he was around 15, we give him a sufficient allowance on the first of the month. But out of this money, he has give his tithe to church, buy fuel for his truck ('94 Chevy = $), lunch money, haircuts, truck repairs or expenses, and spending money. This has been a wonderful learning experience for him. He knows exactly what gas for that truck costs, what it costs for truck inspection stickers, license plates (one February expense) and that you can spend $5-10 at Pizza Parlor or Whataburger several nights a week, and it adds up. Throw in a concert or two in Corpus each month, and you're using dimes for lunch money - lol. Plus, we probably come out ahead not giving him money each time he goes out for something.

As for the rest of us, Allan's shoulder is still giving him fits...finally went to the chiropractor on Friday, and to our massage therapist today. Seems to have helped at bit, and he's planning on visiting both next week as well. The pain seems to be a bit better, although the tingling is still there. He washed all the clothes yesterday except for two loads, so my work today is practically done.

I left school yesterday once again with no lesson plans. And we have a church event to go to on Sunday, so *sigh*, I guess my streak is really up. My papers are graded though, and I will average grades sometime today. I got a letter for a free membership for pastor's wives at Curves this week and am considering this. I used to go to Curves and loved it, and maybe this is what I need to jump myself off the plateau where I've been sitting for several months.

Jacob made it to the quarterfinals of his Tennis tournament on Friday, so I think his ankle is holding up OK. He plays another tournament on Friday, maybe he'll do a bit better.

Markus played in two soccer games this week (both losses). He didn't get much playing time in Tuesday's game, which disappointed him. The team they played last night was very good, he said. It's always tough to lose all the time. But that is Kingsville sports for you - we have a lot of experience in losing.

Thoughts on Valentine's Day, and the Week in Review

2008-02-16T19:23:00.003-06:00

Valentine's Day - a day that brings me much happiness, and also sadness. Happiness, because I have the wonderful pleasure to be married to my best friend. The most amazing and wonderful man. A man I cannot imagine my life without. God brought us together - we were meant to be together - there is no doubt. We had a very nice day. We started out with breakfast at McD's before school. I made one of Allan's favorite meals - pot roast with carrots, potatoes and gravy. I made a wonderful dessert - Lemon Tart with Almond Crust. I had never made it before, and even borrowed a tart pan. Did NOT think that watery lemon filling would ever make a solid...but it did, and it was delicious. I came home to a beautiful vase of flowers and chocolates. We don't usually exchange gifts on this day anymore. It really is Valentines Day everyday for us. We both are always looking for opportunities to do nice things for one another. Even the most everyday things are special to us, just going through them together. We're very blessed. I read somewhere in cyber space someone's comment that people who go all out for Valentines Day are missing the point if they limit their kindnesses to one day a year. I feel sad on this day, because I know too many people who do not have a relationship with their husband like I have with mine. I wish everyone could be so happy. However, I am not willing to share:)

As for the week past:
I did in fact go to school on Sunday (with hubby along for the ride) and did my lesson plans, so I started the week prepared after all. It was a crazy week because of Valentine's. The kids were worked up all week, and Thurday they were hopped up on sugar big time. I, of course, walked out of the house leaving the box of their gifts on the table. Allan brought it out to me.

Jacob played in his first tournament - post injury - Tuesday. He got 4th place doubles. His ankle seemed to hold up OK, but said he wasn't moving around very good yet.

Markus had soccer games on Wednesday (Lost) and Friday (Tied). He continues to have a good time playing, and hopefully they are coming together better as a team.

I had someone ask me about my menu sheet that I use each week. I am apparently too computer illiterate to figure out how to attach it, but it is just a 3-column list with Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner for columns. I plan the meals, then make a list of ingredients that I need. I put my shopping list on the back, and group things by where they are in the store. It's simple, but it works for me.

Mrs. Darling posted about Spring cleaning the very day I began thinking about it. It will be harder this year since I'm working, but I can hardly wait to begin going through and throwing away things. It gives me much satisfaction to thin out our stuff. We have a lot of stuff. A lot.

My brain is getting tired. Boys are coming over later tonight, so I must get the kitchen cleaned, and my things put away. Laundry is still in progress. Allan's shoulder is still killing him. My prayer is for a good nights sleep for us both.

End of an Era (OK -- a short era!)

2008-02-09T20:13:00.000-06:00

My streak of being a well prepared teacher is over. I have a big stack of papers to grade, and no lesson plans for Monday. *sigh* I went several days without grading at home, and before you know it - I'm way behind. Even worse - it is Saturday night and I STILL haven't graded them. We had a field trip Friday, which took up all my planning time, so no lesson plans. Unless I go tomorrow and throw something together.

We had a busy week. Jacob was cleared to practice again, which he was glad about. We ordered him high-top tennis shoes, which he totally and completely hates. His first tournament post injury is Tuesday. I hope he does well what with not practicing for 3 weeks.

Markus played with the varsity soccer team yesterday, and had a really good time. The team lost, but he was happy that the coach said he could play on varsity.

Our friends from New Orleans were in town visiting this week - their schools have a week off for Mardi Gras. It was great to see them again so soon. They left this morning, which left Jacob feeling a bit lost without his best friend around.

Mrs. Darling posted this week about not making weekly menus. As always, I am totally impressed with this great lady. However, I am not her. I am not by nature efficient. Leaving meals to last minute planning spells disaster in our house. I have to work hard at what little efficiency I have. I plan out my meals on Saturday morning. (Even have a form I print off to fill in the blanks, and make my shopping list on the back.) This works for me. It is great to just look at the list and know what I'm cooking that night. Remembering to take thinks out of the freezer the night before can some times pose a problem. lol. Since I've gone back to work, this method has really taken away some of the stress that was there before when I worked. Plus, Allan hates to be asked, "What would you like to have for dinner?" That little bit of planning and thinking makes the everyday task of getting dinner on the table at the same time every night much, much easier.

I've enjoyed catching up with everyone, and have stuck to my Groundhog's Day Resolution for exactly one week. Pat myself on the back:)

Groundhog's Day Resolutions

2008-02-02T18:57:00.000-06:00

OK...most people make resolutions on New Years...never-the-less...

I hereby resolve to return to blogging on Saturdays. To check in on my blogging buddies to see how their lives are going. To share any interesting tidbits about my own life.

There! Let's see how it goes.

The month of January flew by. Allan was ill with a monster stomach virus several weeks ago (lost 9 pounds in one night!). Jacob sprained his ankle big time at tennis two weeks ago. He's recovering nicely, and hopefully will be back on the courts soon. I apparently developed a peanut allergy overnight since Allan rushed me to the ER last Sunday night after a peanut butter sandwich shut down my lung capacity in less than 10 minutes. I must be some kind of a freak of nature - why must my health be full of such drama?? Markus is the only one of us that has had nothing dramatic happen to himself.

Jacob was inducted into NHS last week. Thankfully he was able to limp across the stage and not have to maneuver stairs with the crutches.

Our newest cat, Parsons, turns out to be quite the mouser. Caught a big mouse two nights ago - in the HOUSE. Way to go Parsons!

School is going great. I think I have broken my record for being prepared every day. (3 weeks and counting!) I feel so professional :)

I will check in on everyone tomorrow, leave some comments, and hopefully find myself back in the blogging swing of things.

I Know, I Know, I Know...

2007-12-13T21:00:00.000-06:00

It's been forever since my last post...and this is my 100th post according to my dashboard. I would have liked something profound *sigh* Who knew how busy I would be going back to work...This month is crazy, as December always is. We seem to have work related social engagements most evenings. I haven't graded a paper since Sunday. (Of course, I have the best of intentions, bringing home books and papers every night.) There is no lesson plan what-so-ever this week. We are pulling our hair out rehearsing for the Christmas program which will thankfully be over next Thursday.

Hip hip hurray for us, my beloved and I went to town at 4 am the day after Thanksgiving and did all of our shopping and we were home asleep again by 9:30. We traveled with our list and coupons and did an excellent job budget wise. (Nothing is wrapped yet, of course). I mailed the Christmas cards on Tuesday, as well as the packages that needed shipping. My tree finally has all the ornaments on it, and the boxes of decorations are pretty much empty.

My great son, Jacob, showed once again how like my dad he is. Our Ginny cat LOVES the Christmas tree...always has...she lays under it every minute she's in the house...and plays with the lights. Perhaps I posted about how we had to throw out our Christmas trees in the fall due to possums in the garage...we bought a very nice pre-lit one that was so, SO much quicker to set up. Ginny seemed to have chewed through a light wire - yes - an entire lower section with no lights. Jacob took one look, got his knife, scissors, and electrical tape and proceeded to strip the wires and reconnect them...and VOILA - lights! Daddy would have loved to see it.

Markus had his 17th birthday on Dec. 1. He wanted to go to the beach since in Germany it is always very cold on his birthday. We had a nice day, sunny and around 85. He swam in the ocean and had a very nice day.

My birthday soon followed on the 6th. Yikes, how did I ever get to be 45! I had a terrific day. Allan had a beautiful vase of roses waiting for me, with my birthday day books wrapped so beautifully, a chocolate birthday cake and "Princess" plates, napkins, and cups. We ate at a great local burger place (because I was really wanting the fried pickles) and came home for cake and ice cream and 'bubbly.'

I have been getting very, very, VERY cranky with this stupid hot weather. It should NOT be 85 degrees in the middle of December. God has blessed me today with a 50 degree day. Cloudy, overcast, drizzle (I can pretend it is snow). I wore a sweater today. Always a good thing.

I'm enjoying reading my James Patterson book that I got for my birthday. You can tell how busy we are that I have not already finished it! I have 3 more books to follow after this one!

I sure miss keeping up with all my friends in cyber space. I pop in sometimes so I'm not completely in the dark (deep in the shadows though). Hopefully after the first of the year, I will be back to at least once a week updates, leaving lots of comments on your blogs.

Whirlwind

2007-11-06T21:11:00.000-06:00

The past three weeks have been a whirlwind of activities. So be prepared for a gi-normous post tonight, beginning with the most recent and working backwards. . .

Yesterday was Jacob's 17th birthday. I can barely believe that he is 17 - it was like yesterday that we brought him home from the hospital. He had a pretty nice day, I think. We grilled brats outside and had sour kraut and potato salad with it. He chose cheesecake for his cake.
We went to the farm for opening weekend of deer season this past weekend. We had no luck with the hunting, but loads of fun shooting! Our newest family member also went along for his first hunting experience. We have an exchange student from Berlin living with us until the end of the school year. Unfortunately his first host family didn't work out, and he was left with no where to stay. He and Jacob have a class together...and the rest is history. His name is Markus, and is a really nice, polite, and courteous young man. I think he will fit in terrifically with our family, and are looking forward to getting to know him better.Obviously, when they found the box of rubber gloves in Grandmothers kitchen, great minds must think alike:)

Text Messaging Woes
Our Jacob is not much of a phone talker...but he has become quite the texter. He has done wonderfully with the $10 texting plan that has 200 non-ATT texts and unlimited ATT. But...Apparently he has made some friends who are non-ATT. To the tune of 600+ texts over the 200 limit...at .10 each. Needless to say we have changed to the $20 texting plan with is unlimited.

Finally, I was tagged by The Lutheran Hen to tell you seven thing about myself that you wouldn't know. This isn't as easy as you'd think. I'm supposed to tag 7 more people, but my brain is too tired, so if you're reading, consider yourself tagged!

Seven things about me:
1) I am an only child (probably almost as spoiled then as I am now!)
2) I played trombone in high school. (Can you get any nerdy?)
3) I would love to be able to sing and dance.
4) My favorite cake was always my grandmother Bibby's marble cake with chocolate icing.
5) I absolutely hate, hate to clean the bathroom.
6) I hate to exercise - never feel the endorphine things
7) My favorite band growing up was The Who, but now am fond of Kevin Fowler.

That was not the least bit exciting. *sigh*

Our Anniversary

2007-10-13T21:34:00.000-05:00

Today is our anniversary. The first meal we ever ate as husband and wife was a steak finger basket from Dairy Queen. Every year (almost) we celebrate by going to Dairy Queen and having steak finger baskets. Tonight was no exception. Here we are in the parking lot! We've been married 23 years. It seems like yesterday I was walking down the aisle. God has showered me with blessings all these years. Allan being the best of them all. I treasure every minute spent with him. We pledged to love each other for richer or poorer, in sickness and health. We've certainly been through richer or poorer, and thankfully more health than sickness. Whatever path we've been on, it's been made easier being on it together. There's a Johnny Cash song called 'Rose of My Heart' that we both love to listen to.

Rose Of My Heart

We're the best partners this world's ever seen
Together as close as can be
But sometimes it's hard to find time in between
To tell you what you are to me

You are the rose of my heart
You are the love of my life
A flower not faded nor falling apart
If you're tired, rest your head on my arm
Rose of my Heart.

When sorrow holds you in her arms of clay
It's raindrops that fall from your eyes
Your smile is the sun come to earth for a day
You brighten my blackest of skies

You are the rose of my heart
You are the love of my life
A flower not faded nor falling apart
If you're cool let my love make you warm
Rose of my heart

So hard times are easy times, what do I care
There's nothing I'd change if I could
The tears and the laughter are things that we share
Your hand in mine makes all times good

Nice Matters Award

2007-10-13T21:26:00.001-05:00

I received a very nice award last week from Toni at Special K Family. This is my first award, and I'm glad it's for being nice. This is something I try very hard to be, even when I'm not feeling very nice. So I'm going to pass this award to two other ladies who seem to be very nice themselves. Juloyes at the Accidental Pastor's Wife and Constance at Slim Pickens from My Brain, give yourselves a nice pat on the back. I think you are both kind and loving ladies. The people who know you in real life are blessed to have you! Check out all three blogs, they are great!

The Sixth Target

2007-10-13T21:19:00.001-05:00

The Sixth Target by James Patterson. I finished reading this today. It has all the things you love in a James Patterson book. Short chapters, fun characters, and a good mystery. I enjoyed reading it, but somehow it didn't keep me riveted to the pages like his books usually do. Maybe I just have other things filling up my mind!

Did anyone catch the Women's Murder Club show on TV Friday? Any thoughts? I personally did not really like it. It seemed fake. Only the reporter seemed real. Now granted, I don't watch a lot of network TV. I've never watched any of the CSI shows (even if the Who does sing all their songs:), so maybe this is just how these shows are. I'll give it another week, but I'm not impressed so far.

Time Flies...

2007-09-30T22:39:00.000-05:00

And here I am at 10:40 on Sunday night still waiting for towels to dry. My work for tomorrow is done, and the weekend has flown by with no blogging on my part. We DID have a productive weekend though. We repaired some boards that had fallen down on our back patio cover. Finally remembered to look for hummingbird nectar, and now our feeder is in business. It is hummingbird season, and they are SO cute. Already buzzing around - and did you know they chirp?? Who knew... My clothes line came on Saturday, and Allan has it all installed. Can't wait to hang out towels - they are going to smell soooooo good. The housekeeper comes tomorrow - I'm almost giddy:) And our cats finally are doing their job. Found mouse remains in Jacob's room after church this afternoon. I suspected we had some rodent friends again, but haven't set the traps yet. I guess tomorrow I'll set some out. Ginny must be the mighty hunter, because Bob certainly isn't. Once, we heard one of the traps in the cabinet snap, we looked inside and put both Bob and the rat terrier in front of the door and opened it. The mouse got out of the trap, ran around, and both cat and dog looked at each other and refused to budge. They are definitely NOT earning their keep!

Tomorrow we have our first PTL meeting/Open House/Meet the Teacher night. I hate this stuff - enough said. Then next week, Parent Teacher Conferences for the first report card *sigh*

I'm a Bit Embarrassed, But...

2007-09-24T20:59:00.000-05:00

Today, we had our house cleaned by our new ... HOUSEKEEPER!! She did a wonderful job, but she did tell me that there was a lot she still needed to do, but she would chip away at it each week. I guess that implies that we are more tidy than clean??? And ALLAN cleaned last week, and he is an amazing cleaner. But the house smelled amazing...AND she washed the sheets from last week, and the few clothes in the hamper. WOW. She was so surprised that we had never had anyone clean for us before. It still seems like such a splurge, but will make life much easier for us with me working. Once again, don't I have the most amazing husband??? Thank you for being so good to me:)

Where Does the Time Go?

2007-09-16T16:51:00.000-05:00

I am amazed that two weeks have passed since my last post. The days and hours are flying by so quickly. So many things have happened...where oh where to start. I guess in no particular order...just begin.

Last week, I kept hearing noises in the garage in the mornings...but never could see anything, although things were knocked to the ground most mornings. I guessed we had an opossum. Finally, one morning, I spotted it. That afternoon after Jacob got home, he and Allan went on the great opossum hunt. Finally spotted it behind the freezer, after which it ran and hit in the Christmas tree box. Needless to say, our garage has been further cleaned out as the Christmas tree box made its was immediately to the dumpster!

Three weeks of school has flown by...spend the weekend doing progress reports. Wish some of the students had better grades. I have two boys driving me insane. They seem more interested in laughing and walking around than in any punishment I've handed out. Also have a little girl who wore a shirt with a pink skull on it.

Mother: She was really concerned about wearing this shirt to school, but I told her it would be OK.

Me: It's OK for today, but probably better not wear it after today.

Hint: If your kid thinks something isn't allowed, listen to her!

I have lost TEN pounds :) I'm pretty pleased about this. Although last week one day, the school lunch was enchiladas, rice, and beans. They sent an extra...I had lunch duty...needless to say, I ate every morsel (It was SO good!) I'm starting to get used to feeling hungry :) NOT.

My dear husband spent his day off on Friday washing clothes, cleaning house, and basically doing all my weekend chores so I wouldn't have to. Could there be a greater guy anywhere??

Our computer finally ground to an almost halt. After backing everything important I could find up, last night we went out and bought a new one. It has Vista and everything. It's super nice, but will take some time to get used to. I HATE big purchases. But the computer is cool.

That's it for now - I'm running to the store (in the car of course) for snacks for teenagers. It's homework central here right now (nothing like waiting until the last possible moment, right??)

The First Week

2007-09-03T19:19:00.000-05:00

As far as first weeks go, I had a great one. My class is terrific: 5 girls, 5 boys: 6 second-graders, 4 third-graders. I've got a third grade boy that totally looses it behavior-wise as soon as we start math (perhaps move math to the end of the day???). I'm still fiddling with my schedule, and haven't yet done everything planned in a day. I think I totally forgot how to teach 2 grades at once. But I felt much more confident by the end of the week.

My most beloved husband welcomed me home Monday with a lovely vase of flowers, the sweetest card you'll ever read, and my favorite cocktail. He is the sweetest man. We sat on the couch (with my feet propped on the table of course) sipping our drinks, discussing the happenings of the day. Surprisingly, he had a very productive day himself (I'm sure due to not having me popping in on him all day:)) All week we enjoyed our cocktail hour, and he spent his day off on Friday getting a start on the weekend chores so I wouldn't have so much to do. We're even trying to find someone to come in and clean so that it makes things easier for us both. What a gem of a husband I've got.

I'm sort of prepared to begin the second week. I've enjoyed our long weekend, and hate to think how long until the next day off (I'm not even going to LOOK at the calendar!)

Memorial Day

2007-09-03T19:09:00.001-05:00

Finished "Memorial Day" by Vince Flynn on Saturday. Honestly, I've had this book by my bed for months. I've started it countless times. It doesn't start out with a bang. Only because I had nothing else to read did I stay with it. Once I got a few chapters into it, I was really good. Not as good as his other books, but good. Mitch Rapp discovers a terrorist plot to detonate a nuclear bomb in Washington, D.C. on Memorial Day. There are bad guys in the US, and overseas, and Mitch has to figure out the whole plan while the government is trying to stand in his way at every turn. Worth reading if you can get past the beginning.

Scrapbooking

2007-09-01T21:35:00.000-05:00

I have really, really enjoyed learning how to digital scrapbook. I still have loads and loads to learn, but what fun! My beloved said you would all like seeing my work thus far. If this works, you'll have a slide show of our year from January through April. Click here to begin. For May through July, click here .

Wow! I think I may actually have done it:0)

The Final Product

2007-08-23T22:39:00.000-05:00

First let me say that I started off the day today feeling really good. Our house has begun to return to its normal routine. Two nights in a row, we've eaten dinner together all three of us (at the table no less!). Jacob's been in bed before midnight and up before noon (thanks in great part to tennis practice:) But then the day went downhill.
1. I called for results of my bloodwork done Monday morning...normal, normal, normal... Cholesterol 225, Triglicerides 606 *gasp* yep - couldn't even figure my LDL they were so high. I guess it's diet and exercise time for me *moan and groan*
2. Got to school and worked diligently all morning to attach student's names to the desk with contact paper (not the first time I've done this) - only to discover after lunch that they had all come loose.
3. Found out one little boy I'd really looked forward to having in my class wasn't returning:(
4. Went to lunch with the other teachers, had to wait forever, felt like my time was wasted.
5. Came home feeling terribly behind and like I'd never be ready.

Then...My beloved husband suggested we go back after dinner so I could work some more. So now without further ado - my after pictures - I warn you there's a lot of them!

This is from one corner to the opposite corner - AR computers, Math/Science/SS/Art centers.

Main door to the classroom, calendar, desks, books.

Teachers desk (that's mine), filing cabinet, cupboards.
Library center, work table, and most importantly - my devoted helpers!The teacher at her desk - Allan has taken over the camera:)
Worship area: Bible, Catechism, devotion book
Armor of God - found this in a drawer and thought it was too cute not to put up!

Our Art book comes with art prints for each unit. I LOVE these!
My Center Assignment chart. Time will tell if I have any idea what I'm doing!

So now, at bedtime, I'm much more content and less stressed than I was before dinner. A big, big, BIG thank you and hug to my husband for being so understanding and thoughtful - Love you!

Workers Remorse

2007-08-21T09:29:00.000-05:00

I have it -- big time -- workers remorse. I've not worked the past two school years, and have loved every minute of being the SAHM. And I'm excited about being back in the classroom, with a whole new group and age of kids. A little nervous, but excited. I've already enjoyed visiting and seeing my old friends from school -- all good. But this week - my last one -- I'm filled with lasts. Our last Monday breakfast out together, our last Tuesday lunch shared...soon, I'll be to our last Friday off. I miss my husband already, and school hasn't even begun. No more popping in at the office (I know he won't miss THAT). No more quick visits during the day. I know I'll be fine come Monday.

Classroom and Life Update

2007-08-11T20:16:00.000-05:00

OK, here they are, the before pictures. Piles and piles of things that I don't know what they are, or where they should go. I took Jacob and his friend Zach on Tuesday to move all the heavy things around. (Zach had some good suggestions for where things should go) Zach hooked up the computers, and both boys cleaned the bottoms of the desks with bleach and set them up in groups of 2. I have worked all week (except for Thursday - we had a funeral which took up most of the day). I'm pleased with where I am, but not nearly ready. And of course, I've not even begun to look at the actual books and plan anything yet *yikes*. I have thrown away LOTS of - yes I'll say it - JUNK. It seems that every teacher who has used this room brought every bit of educational things they owned, and then felt the need to leave it for the next people. Do I need a filing cabinet full of memeograph materials?? (I don't even know how to spell that, much less use it!)

I came home yesterday afternoon to a house full of teenagers. Jacob and 5 friends were hanging out around the computer. We grilled some steaks, new potatoes w/rosemary, tomatoes, corn w/lime & cayenne with ice cream for desert. Also watched Disturbia with them. Really good movie...scary and funny and suspenseful, but nothing horribly gross. Jacob said it was too scary for me, but I liked it (It's no Rear Window, but pretty good for a teen version).

Today I've been busy catching up on the weeks chores...between working each day, and the added work of the funeral, all chores since Tuesday have been put on the back burner. Three more loads of laundry, and I'll be totally caught up, hopefully to stay on schedule next week.

I'll post my after pictures when the room is complete!

In Over My Head

2007-08-06T19:19:00.000-05:00

I went today to check out my classroom for the upcoming school year. Boy-o-boy am I overwhelmed. I'm teaching 2nd-3rd grade for the first time. New classroom. Big mess! Everything is in a big heap in the center of the room since they move everything out to clean and wax the floors. I have no clue how to arrange all this stuff that I've never used. I really need to calm down. Plus, it's been so wet and humid this summer, that mold has grown on almost everything. So tomorrow, I'm taking my son the reluctant helper, a bucket of rags, pledge, Clorox, the shopvac, and my aching back and returning to the room to clean and put things in their places (if I can figure out where that would be!) I may take some before pictures to match up after all is clean and decorated. I've forgotten how stressful this time of the school year is. *BIG sigh*

Bourne Ultimatum / HP & the Deathly Hallows

2007-08-05T22:57:00.000-05:00

Wow, what a great entertainment day! We went this afternoon to see The Bourne Ultimatum. Fantastic! As my dad would've said - a real womp-stomper! The movie never slows down, it's one mad and terrific race to the finish. OK, 2 things might be a bit unrealistic *smirk*. #1 Why if the guy standing between the bomb and the man in the car isn't injured is the guy in the car dead? #2 How does anyone walk away from that car chase?? Great movie, A+

Now, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - don't look here for a spoiler. But what an amazing book. I can't begin to express how sad I am that this was the last installment in Harry's life. I have enjoyed these books so much. My son was 11 (Harry's age in book #1) when the first book was published. He has grown up with Harry, Ron and Hermoine. He is not a reader, but reads these books (all 700+ pages of them) from cover to cover. This last book does not disappoint. The characters are heroic, faithful, devoted (to each other and their cause.) If you've not read the books, now is the time to start. Enjoy!

More Travels

2007-07-31T08:17:00.000-05:00

Am I bad at blogging or what?? While my beloved was in Austin taking a class last week, Jacob and I traveled to Ft. Worth to visit family. We had a great time! It was so great to see everyone. We went with my mom to get her a new computer. She had been using one that had a 51/4" floppy drive :(), so she was way past due! Since she is really attached to her dial-up, it took some time getting things downloaded. She has figured out all the important bells and whistles, however, and seems pleased with her purchase. We changed some light bulbs, at breakfast at a great little place, and basically had a blast talking and catching up. I sure wish we could see each other more often.

There was a lot of excitement at Allan's parents - the first night there, lightening struck close to their house, and fried 3-4 computers, fax, phones, DVD, TV's, A/C, etc... FIL was still making a list for insurance at the end of the week when we left. What a pain! He's an accountant, and was frantic without his computers, and all stored on them. On top of this, my MIL was obviously not feeling well, and discovered on Thursday that she has SHINGLES! What a nightmare - I feel so bad for her. I've known several people who've suffered through that, and it is no fun, that is for sure.

Jacob and I went on Friday night to Billy Bob's Texas to see Kevin Fowler. Yes, that's right, the largest honky-tonk in the world. The concert was excellent, but I was definitely out of my comfort zone. Oddly enough, a friend from home was also visiting her grandmother that weekend, and was at the concert. He got to do some boot-scootin' and had a really good time. We were standing outside the concert area before it started, and a young man we'd seen in the gift shop walked up and asked if I was Jacob's mom. He said yes, and the young man asked if we'd like tickets to sit down. We said sure. Turns out he'd won them on a radio station. How sad, in thinking later, that he won probably 4 tickets, and had no one there with him. He must have been between 18-21, because he was alone, and he had no hand stamp and was consuming soda! He also scooted his chair at one point directly on top of my big toenail---OUCH. I almost cried it hurt so bad.

We had done some outlet mall shopping on the way up, and intended to go into Cabella's on the way back, but I must have been so sleep depraved that I completely missed it! We were both looking forward to seeing one of these stores in person. Arrived home safe Saturday night, thrilled to see Allan. We hate being apart. So good to be home again.

I am almost finished with Harry Potter - 6 (I wanted to reread it since I really couldn't remember it at all and Allan was busy reading -7-) Can't wait to get to #7. We actually have 2 copies - Jacob's got one and we shared the 2nd. We went to see The Simpsons movie Sunday afternoon - funny, funny, funny. Loved it.

Tried all day yesterday to catch up in the blogging world. Managed to get through almost all of your blogs, but the computer kept freezing up, hince the tardiness of my updated posting. Maybe I'll do better now...

63rd LCMS National Convention

2007-07-20T11:54:00.000-05:00

I've been out of touch for a week now. My hubby and I were in Houston for the LCMS National Convention. My husband was a voting pastoral delegate, and I was a listener at the back of the convention arena. I always love going to these things, because I find the discussions and debates so interesting. I was pleased, that overall, most of the resolutions/votes were either passed or not passed by over 75%. There were very few issues that were close. The best part, though, was seeing our dear friends from Wyoming that we've not seen for 10 (yes - TEN) years. It was awesome spending time with them. Lisa and I had a ball visiting in the back, and spent a day at the Galleria Mall shopping (and talking of course). Their boys came along, and it was great seeing what amazing young men they've grown into.
We all went out for dinner the last night, and a big thanks to the boys for getting the group photo! Our second night was a fun one, we all gathered at the Concordia Theological Seminary's party after the convention closed for the evening. It was a great time for the men - seeing classmates for the first time in years. The ladies (some of the men brought wives with them) enjoyed catching up on families and churches. Ft. Wayne always throws a good party, and everyone was in good spirits (as you can see, the jokers were at it again, as usual!)
We got home last night - tired and ready to sleep in our own bed. We stopped by our friend from CA to say goodbye. She and the kids left this morning for their new home in New Orleans. We were sad to see them go. It is nice that they are closer to home, and Jacob and Paeton had a great time together this summer.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

2007-07-13T23:13:00.001-05:00

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was awesome! We saw it last night (OK, not the first night, but almost.) Although it was impossible to include everything in the book, as usual they did an amazing job. The thing about all these movies that moves me is that they have completely captured - exactly - how I have imagined the scenes in my mind. The new characters were excellent, and the returning characters were brilliant as always. It was a bit darker than the last movie, and had some scary parts that might frighten little ones. 5+ stars!

Ratatouille

2007-07-07T19:20:00.001-05:00

We took Grandmother to see what may have been the very first movie she's seen in a theater. Went to see "Ratatouille." It was a great movie! Very funny, and since I love to cook, neat to see the animation of the cooking. Grandmother laughed out loud on more than one occasion. Great fun for all ages - a must see.

Long Time No Post

2007-07-05T21:44:00.000-05:00

It has been a whirlwind around here trying to make a nice visit with Grandmother. I shall start at the beginning:
Friday - we drove to Austin and picked her up at her granddaughter's house. We drove back home and brought all her bags in and gave her the grand tour. We were all tired after all the driving and took it easy that night.
Saturday - I took Grandmother to Wally World for some shopping. She doesn't move very fast, but boy can she shop. She picked out some things for her new great-great granddaughter, and found a pair of pants she'd been looking for in her size. We started the morning at church watching the Boy Scouts re-stripe the parking lot. She met lots of new people and sat out in the heat. She is a great sport and quite the trooper:)
Sunday - After church and lunch, we drove down to see Jessa. She is doing great, as is her mother. She is a beautiful baby, lots and lots of hair, blue eyes, and beautiful skin. She is already sleeping 4-5 hours at a time (God's blessings showering down on her parents!) We had terrible storms while we were there, and also at home. We arrived home to a powerless house, so we took Grandmother to Chili's for dinner. She'd only been there one other time. Because of the rain, Jacob was unable to work after Saturday. AND it appears watermelon season is about done, so he got to work 4 whole days! But he had a great time and got his check today - his FIRST paycheck. He has since been spending virtually every minute socializing with friends.
Wednesday - July 4th. I took Grandmother to our little 4th of July parade - I'm not sure if she's ever been to a parade before - and ours isn't much - lasted all of 20 minutes. She had fun, though.
Then, last night some of our friends had their annual 4th of July party, and we all went to that. Grandmother got to meet a lot of people like none she's ever met:) She was awesome, talked to everyone, and seemed to have a great time.

We still have more things in store for her, and I'm taking pictures to put together an album of her visit. She's a dream of a houseguest. She has picked tomatoes and weeded the bed, cut up and taken out the seeds of a watermelon, and has two pies she's wanting to fix. Not bad for 86 years young.

Friday Night Adventures

2007-06-29T22:54:00.000-05:00

Whew - this has been a busy day. We drove to Austin this morning to pick up Allan's grandmother and bring her back for a visit. She's going to stay with us almost 2 weeks. It's her first visit here, and I think she's pretty excited. I KNOW she's excited about seeing her great-great-granddaughter! Hopefully we'll be able to do that early in the week. She's our first official guest (other than various teen-aged boys) in our guest room (aka Sarah's room).

Jacob finally started his job on Wednesday. He is working the conveyor belt. He picks out the seeded watermelons and packs them in boxes to be put on the trucks for shipping. His work days are from 8 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. with a 30 minute lunch break. My poor baby is sooooooooooo tired. Once he gets that first paycheck, it will all be worth it though.

Evan Almighty

2007-06-29T22:52:00.000-05:00

Allan and I went to see "Evan Almighty" last night. It was really good - nothing objectionable - great for the whole family. I love his assistant - she always plays a great role. Lots of sight gags and funny lines. I think I liked "Bruce Almighty" better, but this one was worth the trip to the theater.

Lean Mean Thirteen

2007-06-29T22:47:00.000-05:00

"Lean Mean Thirteen" by Janet Evanovich is the thirteenth installment of the Stephanie Plum adventures. It was as funny as ever. Grandma was in fine form, Morelli and Ranger were both looking for Stephanie's attention same as always, Lula is a scream. There are exploding rodents, stun gun accidents, and burning buildings. A great read, perfect for summer !

Mid-Week Activities

2007-06-27T20:16:00.000-05:00

We drove down to Progresso, Mexico yesterday for lunch. We ate at our regular place, and picked up some Advantage for the dogs. It's nice being so close to the border, because it makes for a nice outing when things

in town are too boring to face. This is the mighty Rio Grande River, from the exact border between the nations (Mexico to the left, Texas to the right). This is the Progresso market. There were not many people this day, but more cars than usual. You can get any kind of dental work done on these blocks, hair braids, prescription-free medications, leather goods, pottery, and loads of junk as well.
This is the inside of one of the bigger stores. Thankfully the stores usually have a/c. It was blazing hot this day.

Sarah and the baby are doing great.
Jacob started his job (finally) at 9 a.m., and thinks he'll work until 11. I bet I didn't pack enough food for such a long day. Can't wait to find out what he's been doing. One thing for sure - he'll be tired!

Same Kind of Different as Me

2007-06-26T20:20:00.000-05:00

Here's a shocker: "Same Kind of Different as Me" by Ron Hall & Denver Moore is a NON-fiction book - yes, I've read a non-fiction book:) A friend from church gave us this book to read, and it is an amazing story. It is the story of 2 men - a homeless black man from the cotton fields of Louisiana and a well-to-do art dealer - and the art dealers wife. This is the story of how these three people came together at a homeless shelter, and how God worked in their lives. It alternates between the two men's voices, telling how they grew up, and how they came to meet at the mission. It all happens in Fort Worth, TX, which happens to be where we are from. It was neat because we recognized all the places, and Ron Hall actually graduated from our high school. This was an inspiring story, and well worth the time spent reading it.

Jessa Update

2007-06-25T07:37:00.000-05:00

We drove down south yesterday afternoon to visit Sarah and Jessa. Sarah is doing amazing - she's in a little pain, but doing really well. She had quite an ordeal having this precious girl.They wanted a completely natural birth with no doctors, only mid-wives. She labored hard and long trying to give birth, and transferred to the hospital after many hours. Finally, at 1:09 a.m. on Sunday, they had a c-section. All went very smoothly, and everyone at the hospital I encountered was wonderful.She should get to come home today (maybe) or tomorrow (more likely.) Jessa is just so good natured so far, eating OK, and just as sweet as can be.
It was awesome to hold her, and hear her sweet little sounds that she makes. He new uncle thinks that she is scared of him because she fussed while he was holding her. I told him it was him who was scared of her, and she could tell! He'll get over that.

Jessa's Big Day

2007-06-24T07:44:00.001-05:00

Jessa finally made her arrival this morning between midnight and 1:30 a.m. Just a quick dash of the details before church. I've had 3 hours sleep since Thurday.
9 pounds 4.1 ounces; length at this point unknown; 30 hours labor; c-section; looks just like her momma did! Will see her again this afternoon and take some pics in person rather than behind the glass.

Step On A Crack

2007-06-20T22:53:00.001-05:00

I finished "Step on a Crack" by James Patterson earlier in the week. This book introduces a new character, Mike Bennett, a NYC police detective. This story explored both sides of the character: his personal life, and his professional life. On the personal side, very touching...loving husband and dad to 10 adopted kids. On the professional side, he is called to negotiate with someone who has taken 34 famous people hostage in St. Patrick's Cathedral at the funeral of the former first lady. Also has 2 really interesting characters: his Grandfather, and a new au pair. Really a good read, I hope he writes more books with these characters.

That Was Then . . .This Is Now

2007-06-16T20:53:00.000-05:00

How the time flies. You are looking at the two best boys on the planet. Safely home from camp. They didn't fall off the mountain, and had a blast.

They plan on returning next summer as paid staff. There could have been some practical jokes played while they were gone. These two are like two peas in a pod.

Friday, and No Baby Yet

2007-06-15T18:56:00.000-05:00

Here it is, Friday night, and we still have no granddaughter:( We're trying to be patient...trying to keep ahead of all our work/chores so that if we have to head south, we'll have no worries here at home.

We had our friend Katie and her family over last night for dinner. Served grilled steaks, brats, and mahi mahi; peel and eat shrimp; rosemary new potatoes; tomato-mozzarella-basil tomato salad; and my made-up strawberry cake. Everything was delicious (Allan is the grilling KING!). Katie's new baby, Seth, is an angel.

I had a question about Wednesday's post from Jennifer about fried pickles. These are easy to make at home, so I thought I'd share my recipe. It is from the only good cooking magazine (in my opinion) - Taste of Home. The August/September 2004 issue to be exact.

Fried Dill Pickle Coins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs
1 cup milk
3 cups thin dill pickle slices, drained
Oil for frying
Ranch salad dressing for dipping

In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, salt, and pepper.
In another bowl, beat eggs and milk.
Blot pickles with paper towel to remove moisture.
Coat pickles with flour mixture, then dip in egg mixture.
Coat again with flour mixture.
Fry pickles about 10 at a time for 3 minutes or until golden brown, turning once.
Drain on paper towels.
Serve with Ranch dressing.

Tomorrow we'll have our small scale garage sale to try to get rid of the last of our big things from the garage (especially that monster grill guard which didn't fit Jacob's truck - please someone want that!). I'm more concerned with people taking things away than with the $$$.

I looked at books at Wal-Mart yesterday, and boy are there some good ones out right now that I can't wait to get to take on vacation. New ones by Catherine Coulter, James Patterson, John Sandford, Lee Child and soon Janet Evanovich. I'll be totally worthless as far as chores are concerned!

Mid-Week Update

2007-06-13T08:18:00.000-05:00

This has been a busy, but productive, week so far. Sunday was a great afternoon - nap and all. We enjoyed lazing around with nothing to do. Monday, we discovered that our friends from CA, Katie and her family, had arrived at 3 a.m. after dropping her son Paeton off at Scout camp with Jacob. We went to meet our new Godson, Seth. He is an angel. So cute. He smiled:) We went back to visit later that evening and took a dip in the pool. That day, I began my garage purge. Was very proud of my progress. Allan liked the idea, so yesterday afternoon, he decided to get involved, and now our garage is purged! We filled the dumpster, and have a pile in the middle for an impromptu garage sale on Saturday. I am listing items on ebay as I come to them (eliminates stuff AND boxes!) We had a small group Bible study last night. Folks were talking about a burger place in town (Big House Burgers) that we hadn't been to *gasp* and all were shocked by that. So we went there for dinner. They have fried pickles (our favorite) YUM says it all. Over at They Grew in My Heart, Jennifer posted a great list of Christian ways to ease stress. Check it out! Everything was really good. I have gotten no emergency call from camp, so I'm assuming that Jacob hasn't fallen off the mountain. Always a good thing. We still aren't grandparents...it's really hard waiting.

Act of Treason

2007-06-13T08:13:00.001-05:00

"Act of Treason" by Vince Flynn is great. Awesome. 5 stars. Absolutely loved this book. Mitch Rapp is the character he writes about. He is a CIA agent. It is election time, and the presidential/vice-presidential candidates are on the campaign trail. A terrorist is hired to kill them with a car bomb. Mitch's assignment is to find the bomber, and who hired him. Flynn's books are always outstanding. Can't put them down. Mitch Rapp is a great character, as is the CIA director, Irene Kennedy. Only one of these books have been hard for me to get into...the pages keep flying on all the others. After two duds that I've had to quit reading in the last few weeks - this was a joy. Sorry that it's over.

Update - Already

2007-06-09T23:01:00.001-05:00

For some crazy reason, I just looked at the web site for the Scout Camp Jacob is going to. I found this picture, with this caption - After a week of training, the Scouts’ Climbing Merit Badge experience will culminate at “Graduation Rock.” Wow - not too sure I like the idea of that being Jacob about to hop off the top of that rock. (However, I think he'll love it, but boy - I'm a little nervous now!)

Also forgot to mention that I'm reading a totally awesome book! I'm thrilled, because I've been very frustrated the last few weeks with my reading material. I started an Iris Johansen book that was a reprint of an early romance novel. Quit 1/3 of the way through - not a big romance novel fan. Then started an early Alex Cross/James Patterson book - big mistake - do not like his early Cross books at all - way too much awful violence - ick - made it 12 chapters (about 25 pages :) and quit. This one I'm reading now 'rocks.'

Where Did the Week Go?

2007-06-09T22:07:00.000-05:00

What a week! We finished VBS on Thursday. Had an awesome time, though not as many kids as in previous years. I'm not sure what that's all about... Jacob didn't get to start his job after all - we had rain on Tuesday, and the fields have been too wet to harvest. Apparently, if you can't harvest, there are no melons to stack :) He is off for a week at scout camp in the Davis Mountains. He is meeting up with his best friend, Paeton, there. They are our friends who live in CA and are coming for the summer to visit Katie's folks. Can't wait to see them, and meet little Seth. Our daughter, Sarah, had a Dr.'s appointment today, and nothing much is happening with the baby - maybe another week :( It is so, so, SO, SO HOT here. Thursday, I think it was 105 or something. Just going back and forth to the garage to do laundry has about killed me. I hate, HATE, HATE hot weather. (Once Katie gets here, we can go have pool time at her parents', and that will be awesome!) Tomorrow will be our first Sunday with a free afternoon in 7 YEARS. I'm not sure exactly what we'll do?

It Seems Like It Was Only Yesterday

2007-06-05T22:29:00.001-05:00

It seems like it was only yesterday that I was chasing this darling boy around the farm - trying to clean his face. When I close my eyes, and think of him, this is the face I see. But when I open my eyes, I see this very handsome young man standing before me. A young man who begins his very first job on Thursday. Where has the time gone? He is thrilled to have found a job for the summer, especially since he has weeks here and there where he is committed to other things and he will be out of town. He is going to be a watermelon stacker. So when you buy that melon, think of him. Because he's tall, he'll be stacking them on the top shelf. In the watermelon shed. Where it's hot and there are lots of skeeters. I might, just maybe, be a little proud of him. :)

Scrap Happy Week 7

2007-06-04T14:01:00.001-05:00

For this weeks scrapbook page, I used my new digital scrapbooking program - Creative Keepsakes Scrapbook Design. I am trying out an idea to make scrapbook pages out of all my photos and put them together in a slide show. Then, I'll make a DVD and give it to our parents for Christmas so they can see our year. Time will tell how it plays out. This page is from my February pictures, and shows some Eagle Scout things that we went to. You can see other, more professional pages by going to So Much to Say, So Little Time.

Vacation Bible School

2007-06-03T21:28:00.000-05:00

We had our first night of VBS tonight. You can look here for some pics. I'll be adding pictures as the week progresses, so check back for updates. We're doing "Avalanche Ranch" by Group. This is a great company, and always has a good VBS program. We had a small turnout tonight, but I'm hoping it will pick up tomorrow. I love the mountain decoration. Can you believe this was trash?? All the paper was taken off the walls at our local primary school the last day of school, and magically transformed into mountains and sky. (There's even sky stuffed into the burlap bags!) As usual, we had probably 2 volunteers for each kid. Everything went great, and I can't wait until tomorrow.

Shrek 3

2007-06-01T21:50:00.000-05:00

We went to see Shrek 3 this afternoon. It was good, and I have a feeling that like the others, every time you see it you see something you missed the time before. It wasn't as good as I was expecting, because Jacob loved it - said he laughed all through it. I loved Mr. Merlin's shoes :) Absolutely worth the 2 $3 tickets.

Going Into the Weekend

2007-06-01T21:38:00.000-05:00

Jacob is home from the river. We were expecting to pick him up in the morning, but they arrived around 6:00. I am always so glad to see him when he's been away. He had a blast, lots of tubing, hiking, and looking at girls dancing. He's now convinced he needs to learn to dance. I thought I'd post a few pictures of baby Jessa's room that I took on Tuesday. Sarah and Joey did a great job on it! If you look closely, you can see the fabric book I made her on the bookcase, and her afghan on the crib. I can't wait until she's here to enjoy her lovely room.
I did some more spring cleaning today - finished going through and cleaning the last of the kitchen cabinets. Threw out another trash bag of clutter! Also got 6 items listed on ebay (3 have bids already!).

Quick Update

2007-05-30T08:32:00.001-05:00

A quick note, as I have 3 days of chores to do today. (Shame on me for getting behind:( Our son is off to the "river", a very, very popular place for summertime here. A good friend invited him to go along with their family, and he'll be back Saturday. I spent the bigger part of yesterday at our daughter's house. We put together 3 casseroles for freezing to help out after Jessa is born. I got to see the baby's room. They did an awesome job, and it looks great! Today though, work, work, work. (And pleeeeaaaaase, a trip to the library - I am in a snit without something to read.)

A Sunday of Sweet Sorrows

2007-05-27T19:46:00.000-05:00

This has been a Sunday full of joy and bittersweet sorrow. This morning, we had a beautiful Pentecost service, with readings from Genesis (Tower of Babel) and the Pentecost story from Acts. The sermon nicely tied together the introduction of different languages at Babel, and the bringing together of all nations at Pentecost. We also had another baptism, which is always so special.

The bittersweet came this afternoon. The second church my husband serves was decommissioned today. He has served this congregation for 7 years. As an aging parish, normal Sunday attendance was down to around 10 (including my husband and myself). The remaining members are all able-bodied, and need and desire to be a part of a larger congregation that they can be involved with activities other than an hour of church on Sundays. They voted in January to decommission the church. Although I have no doubt that this is the proper thing, that these lovely people will spiritually be better off in a more active congregation, it is still hard to say goodbye. Several will come to our congregation. My husband preached on today's Gospel lesson: John 14:23-31. He stressed that the Holy Spirit is with each of them - they take it with them to their new churches. The Holy Spirit isn't tied to a pastor, or to a church building, but to each of them. It was very touching and emotional. We had a lot of former members and family members present, and everyone hung around to eat and visit.

More storms have moved through tonight (another 2" so far.) A long day. Glad it's over.